2000
#4,889
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,597
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.45
Rare Last name
Trombley
A French occupational surname referring to a player or maker of the trumpet or horn.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 7,459 Americans carry the last name Trombley. That puts it at #5,188 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.18 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 45,952 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Trombley 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
7.5K
1 in 45,952
Census rank
#5,188
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
6.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 6,505 bearers of the surname Trombley in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.18 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5188th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Trombley, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.3%) and Hispanic (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Trombley
The surname "TROMBLEY" originated in France, dating back to the Middle Ages. It is believed to have derived from the Old French word "tromble," which means "trumpet" or "bugle." This suggests that the name may have been initially given to someone who played the trumpet or a similar musical instrument.
The earliest known record of the surname Trombley can be traced back to the 13th century in the region of Normandy, France. It is possible that the name was initially a descriptive nickname or occupational name given to a person who worked as a trumpeter or a musician.
In the 14th century, the name appeared in various historical records and documents, including the "Livre des Bourgeois de Rouen" (Book of Bourgeois of Rouen), which recorded the names of citizens in the city of Rouen, Normandy.
One of the earliest notable individuals with the surname Trombley was Jean Trombley, a French soldier who fought in the Hundred Years' War (1337-1453) between England and France. He was born around 1380 and served under King Charles VI of France.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the name Trombley was also found in various regions of France, including Brittany, Picardy, and Île-de-France. Some variations in spelling, such as "Tromblé," "Tromblée," and "Tromblier," were also recorded.
In the late 17th century, a branch of the Trombley family emigrated from France to New France (present-day Quebec, Canada). One of the earliest recorded settlers with this surname was Pierre Trombley, who arrived in Quebec in 1685.
Another notable figure with the surname Trombley was François Trombley, a French-Canadian farmer and militia officer who fought against the British during the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783). He was born in 1748 in Quebec and died in 1819.
During the 19th century, the Trombley surname spread to other parts of North America, including the United States, as French-Canadian families migrated and settled in various regions.
Some other notable individuals with the surname Trombley throughout history include:
1. Louis Trombley (1895-1979), an American Major League Baseball player.
2. Alfred Trombley (1905-1980), a Canadian politician and member of the Legislative Assembly of Quebec.
3. Rémi Trombley (1920-2006), a Canadian ice hockey player and coach.
4. Jean-Pierre Trombley (born 1945), a French-Canadian singer and actor.
5. Lynne Trombley (born 1951), an American author and historian.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Trombley
Among Census respondents with the surname Trombley, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.3%) and Hispanic (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Trombley 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 Trombley surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.5% · 5,825
- Two or more races4.3% · 282
- Hispanic or Latino2.6% · 170
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.2% · 142
- Black or African American0.7% · 47
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 39
Timeline
Historical Census data for Trombley
Trombley 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
#5,074
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,908
+311 bearers (+4.7%)
Per 100,000 2.34
Rank movement Down 185 places
2020
#5,188
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,505
-403 bearers (-5.8%)
Per 100,000 2.18
Rank movement Down 114 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,889 | 6,597 | 2.45 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,074 | 6,908 | 2.34 | +311 bearers (+4.7%) | Down 185 places |
| 2020 | #5,188 | 6,505 | 2.18 | -403 bearers (-5.8%) | Down 114 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 Trombley 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 | #5,074 | #5,188 | -2.2% |
| Count | 6,908 | 6,505 | -5.8% |
| Per 100K | 2.34 | 2.18 | -7.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Trombley bearers went from 6,908 to 6,505 (-5.8% change). The surname moved down 114 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,074 to #5,188.
FAQ
Trombley surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Trombley?
Name Census estimates that about 7,459 living Americans carry the surname Trombley. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 45,952 residents.
How common is Trombley?
Trombley ranks #5,188 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.18 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 6,505 people with the surname Trombley. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (7,459), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.18 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.18 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Trombley.
Has Trombley become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Trombley went from 6,908 recorded bearers to 6,505. That is a decrease of 403 (-5.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,074 to #5,188.
What does the Census say about the background of Trombley?
Among Census respondents with the surname Trombley, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.3%) and Hispanic (2.6%). 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 Trombley in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.5% (5,825 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Trombley appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.5%), Two or More Races (4.3%), Hispanic (2.6%). 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 Trombley (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 Trombley mean?
A French occupational surname referring to a player or maker of the trumpet or horn. 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 Trombley (2.18 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 Trombley?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.