2000
#16,373
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,619
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.60
Rare Last name
Mallet
A French occupational surname referring to a maker or seller of mallets or wooden hammers.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,742 Americans carry the last name Mallet. That puts it at #18,093 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.51 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 196,759 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mallet 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Mallet with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
1.7K
1 in 196,759
Census rank
#18,093
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,519 bearers of the surname Mallet in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.51 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 18093rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mallet, the largest self-reported group is White at 59.8%. The next largest groups are Black (30.9%) and Hispanic (5.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mallet
The surname Mallet is of French origin, derived from the Old French word "mallet," which means "small mallet" or "hammer." The name can be traced back to the 11th century in the region of Normandy, France.
In the Middle Ages, the name Mallet was likely an occupational surname given to individuals who worked as carpenters, blacksmiths, or other tradesmen who used a small mallet or hammer as part of their profession. It is also possible that the name was given as a nickname to someone with a strong, forceful personality or manner.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Mallet can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a comprehensive survey of landowners and their properties in England commissioned by William the Conqueror. The name appears as "Mallet" in various entries, indicating that individuals bearing this surname were present in England shortly after the Norman Conquest.
In the 13th century, the name Mallet appeared in various records and manuscripts, such as the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273, which documented the holders of land and their tenants in England. During this time, the name was also associated with several notable individuals, including Sir Walter Mallet (born c. 1265), a prominent English knight and landowner.
The Mallet surname continued to spread throughout England and other parts of Europe in the following centuries. One notable figure was Robert Mallet (c. 1510-1567), an English mathematician and astronomer who made significant contributions to the study of comets and planetary motion.
Another prominent individual with the Mallet surname was Claude-François de Mallet (1711-1785), a Swiss-born French writer and philosopher who was a member of the French Academy and played a crucial role in the Enlightenment movement.
In the 19th century, the Mallet family was well-established in England, with several members achieving distinction in various fields. One such individual was Sir Louis Mallet (1823-1890), a British civil servant and diplomat who served as Under-Secretary of State for India and later as Ambassador to Turkey.
Another notable figure from this period was Robert Mallet (1810-1881), an Irish physicist and engineer who made significant contributions to the study of earthquakes and seismology. He is considered one of the founders of modern seismological research.
As the centuries passed, the Mallet surname continued to spread across various regions, with individuals bearing this name making their mark in various fields, from literature and the arts to politics and science.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mallet
Among Census respondents with the surname Mallet, the largest self-reported group is White at 59.8%. The next largest groups are Black (30.9%) and Hispanic (5.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Mallet 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 Mallet surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White59.8% · 909
- Black or African American30.9% · 469
- Hispanic or Latino5.1% · 77
- Two or more races3.6% · 54
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 9
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mallet
Mallet 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
#14,838
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,997
+378 bearers (+23.3%)
Per 100,000 0.68
Rank movement Up 1,535 places
2020
#18,093
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,519
-478 bearers (-23.9%)
Per 100,000 0.51
Rank movement Down 3,255 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #16,373 | 1,619 | 0.60 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #14,838 | 1,997 | 0.68 | +378 bearers (+23.3%) | Up 1,535 places |
| 2020 | #18,093 | 1,519 | 0.51 | -478 bearers (-23.9%) | Down 3,255 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 Mallet 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 | #14,838 | #18,093 | -21.9% |
| Count | 1,997 | 1,519 | -23.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.68 | 0.51 | -25.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mallet bearers went from 1,997 to 1,519 (-23.9% change). The surname moved down 3,255 positions in the national ranking, going from #14,838 to #18,093.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Mallet
FAQ
Mallet surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mallet?
Name Census estimates that about 1,742 living Americans carry the surname Mallet. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 196,759 residents.
How common is Mallet?
Mallet ranks #18,093 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.51 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 1,519 people with the surname Mallet. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,742), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.51 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.51 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Mallet.
Has Mallet become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mallet went from 1,997 recorded bearers to 1,519. That is a decrease of 478 (-23.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #14,838 to #18,093.
What does the Census say about the background of Mallet?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mallet, the largest self-reported group is White at 59.8%. The next largest groups are Black (30.9%) and Hispanic (5.1%). 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 Mallet in the 2020 Census, accounting for 59.8% (909 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mallet appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (59.8%), Black (30.9%), Hispanic (5.1%). 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 Mallet (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 Mallet mean?
A French occupational surname referring to a maker or seller of mallets or wooden hammers. 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 Mallet (0.51 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 are called Mallet?
For a quick modern take, check how common the surname Mallet is on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.