2000
#4,210
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,802
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.89
Rare Last name
Tremblay
A French topographic surname referring to someone living near a patch of trembling aspen trees.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 8,852 Americans carry the last name Tremblay. That puts it at #4,457 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.58 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 38,721 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Tremblay surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
8.9K
1 in 38,721
Census rank
#4,457
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
7.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 7,719 bearers of the surname Tremblay in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.58 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4457th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Tremblay, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.6%) and Hispanic (2.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Tremblay
The surname Tremblay originated in France, deriving from the French word "tremble," which means "aspen tree." It emerged as a toponymic surname, referring to someone who lived near or was associated with an aspen tree or grove.
The earliest recorded instances of the name date back to the 13th century in the Normandy region of France. Historical records from this period, such as local tax rolls and land registries, feature variations of the name like "de Tremblay" and "Tremblé."
In the 14th century, the surname appeared in various French manuscripts and documents, indicating its spread across the country. One notable example is a charter from 1367, which mentions a "Jehan Tremblay" from the village of Tremblay-en-France, near Paris.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, many individuals bearing the name Tremblay emigrated from France to the New World, particularly to the French colonies of Acadia (present-day Maritime provinces of Canada) and New France (modern-day Quebec and Ontario). This diaspora played a significant role in the name's proliferation across North America.
Among the earliest recorded Tremblays in the New World was Jacques Tremblay, born in 1624 in the parish of Saint-Pierre, Normandy, France. He arrived in New France in 1642 and is considered one of the founding families of the French-Canadian population.
Other notable individuals with the surname Tremblay throughout history include:
1. François Tremblay (1638-1708), a French-Canadian colonist and landowner in Quebec.
2. Pierre Tremblay (1665-1738), a French-Canadian farmer and militia captain during the French and Indian Wars.
3. Marie-Victorin Tremblay (1876-1935), a renowned Canadian botanist and educator.
4. Michel Tremblay (born 1942), a celebrated Québécois playwright, novelist, and screenwriter.
5. Gilles Tremblay (1932-2017), a prominent Canadian composer known for his avant-garde works.
The surname Tremblay has remained prevalent in regions with significant French-Canadian populations, such as Quebec, New Brunswick, and parts of New England in the United States.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Tremblay
Among Census respondents with the surname Tremblay, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.6%) and Hispanic (2.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Tremblay bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Tremblay surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.7% · 7,076
- Two or more races3.6% · 275
- Hispanic or Latino2.7% · 212
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 66
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 63
- Black or African American0.3% · 27
Timeline
Historical Census data for Tremblay
Tremblay appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#4,438
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,996
+194 bearers (+2.5%)
Per 100,000 2.71
Rank movement Down 228 places
2020
#4,457
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,719
-277 bearers (-3.5%)
Per 100,000 2.58
Rank movement Down 19 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,210 | 7,802 | 2.89 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,438 | 7,996 | 2.71 | +194 bearers (+2.5%) | Down 228 places |
| 2020 | #4,457 | 7,719 | 2.58 | -277 bearers (-3.5%) | Down 19 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Tremblay surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #4,438 | #4,457 | -0.4% |
| Count | 7,996 | 7,719 | -3.5% |
| Per 100K | 2.71 | 2.58 | -4.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Tremblay bearers went from 7,996 to 7,719 (-3.5% change). The surname moved down 19 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,438 to #4,457.
FAQ
Tremblay surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Tremblay?
Name Census estimates that about 8,852 living Americans carry the surname Tremblay. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 38,721 residents.
How common is Tremblay?
Tremblay ranks #4,457 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.58 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 7,719 people with the surname Tremblay. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (8,852), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.58 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.58 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Tremblay.
Has Tremblay become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Tremblay went from 7,996 recorded bearers to 7,719. That is a decrease of 277 (-3.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #4,438 to #4,457.
What does the Census say about the background of Tremblay?
Among Census respondents with the surname Tremblay, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.6%) and Hispanic (2.7%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Tremblay in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.7% (7,076 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Tremblay appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.7%), Two or More Races (3.6%), Hispanic (2.7%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Tremblay (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Tremblay mean?
A French topographic surname referring to someone living near a patch of trembling aspen trees. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Tremblay (2.58 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people have the surname Tremblay?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.