2000
#5,185
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,192
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.30
Rare Last name
Wyant
A topographic surname referring to someone who lived near a river crossing or ford.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,988 Americans carry the last name Wyant. That puts it at #5,508 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 49,049 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Wyant 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
7.0K
1 in 49,049
Census rank
#5,508
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
6.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 6,094 bearers of the surname Wyant in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5508th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Wyant, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.9%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Wyant
The surname WYANT is of French origin, derived from the Old French word "guyant" which means "guiding" or "leading". It is believed to have originated in the region of Normandy in northern France during the medieval period, around the 11th or 12th century.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Domesday Book, a medieval census compiled by order of William the Conqueror in 1086. The name is listed as "Wihant" and referred to a landowner in the county of Norfolk, England.
In the 13th century, the surname appeared in various forms such as "Wyhaunt", "Wyhant", and "Wyant" in various records and manuscripts from the Normandy region of France. It is thought that the name may have been derived from a place name, possibly a village or hamlet, but the exact location is uncertain.
During the 14th century, the name began to spread across Europe, with notable individuals bearing the surname. One such person was Jean Wyant, a French knight who fought in the Hundred Years' War against the English in the 1340s.
In the 15th century, the name appeared in England, with records showing a John Wyant residing in the city of York in the year 1472. This suggests that the name may have been brought to England by Norman settlers after the Norman Conquest of 1066.
Throughout the centuries, the WYANT surname has been associated with several notable figures. One of the most well-known was Sir Thomas Wyant (1543-1615), an English merchant and explorer who established trade routes with the Ottoman Empire and India.
Another prominent individual with the WYANT surname was Marie-Louise Wyant (1682-1753), a French painter and engraver who was active in Paris during the early 18th century. Her works were widely acclaimed and can be found in many prestigious art collections.
In the 19th century, Jacob Wyant (1819-1892) was a prominent American lawyer and politician from Ohio. He served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1869 to 1873.
The name has also been associated with literary figures, such as the American author and poet, Robert Wyant (1901-1971), whose works explored themes of nature and the human experience.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Wyant
Among Census respondents with the surname Wyant, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.9%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Wyant 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 Wyant surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.9% · 5,598
- Two or more races3.9% · 240
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 151
- Black or African American0.8% · 47
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 35
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 23
Timeline
Historical Census data for Wyant
Wyant 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
#5,359
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,498
+306 bearers (+4.9%)
Per 100,000 2.20
Rank movement Down 174 places
2020
#5,508
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,094
-404 bearers (-6.2%)
Per 100,000 2.04
Rank movement Down 149 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,185 | 6,192 | 2.30 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,359 | 6,498 | 2.20 | +306 bearers (+4.9%) | Down 174 places |
| 2020 | #5,508 | 6,094 | 2.04 | -404 bearers (-6.2%) | Down 149 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 Wyant 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 | #5,359 | #5,508 | -2.8% |
| Count | 6,498 | 6,094 | -6.2% |
| Per 100K | 2.20 | 2.04 | -7.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Wyant bearers went from 6,498 to 6,094 (-6.2% change). The surname moved down 149 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,359 to #5,508.
FAQ
Wyant surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Wyant?
Name Census estimates that about 6,988 living Americans carry the surname Wyant. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 49,049 residents.
How common is Wyant?
Wyant ranks #5,508 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.04 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 6,094 people with the surname Wyant. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,988), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.04 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 Wyant.
Has Wyant become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Wyant went from 6,498 recorded bearers to 6,094. That is a decrease of 404 (-6.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,359 to #5,508.
What does the Census say about the background of Wyant?
Among Census respondents with the surname Wyant, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.9%) and Hispanic (2.5%). 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 Wyant in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.9% (5,598 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Wyant appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.9%), Two or More Races (3.9%), Hispanic (2.5%). 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 Wyant (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 Wyant mean?
A topographic surname referring to someone who lived near a river crossing or ford. 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 Wyant (2.04 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 common is the surname Wyant?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people are called Wyant at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.