2000
#40,019
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 516
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.19
Very Rare Last name
Verne
A surname potentially derived from French for alder tree or green fields.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 616 Americans carry the last name Verne. That puts it at #43,339 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.18 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 556,419 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Verne 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
616
1 in 556,419
Census rank
#43,339
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
537
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 537 bearers of the surname Verne in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.18 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 43339th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Verne, the largest self-reported group is White at 67.8%. The next largest groups are Black (21.0%) and Hispanic (8.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Verne
The surname VERNE originated in France and dates back to the Middle Ages. It is thought to have derived from the Old French word "verne," meaning an alder tree. This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who lived near an alder grove or worked with alder wood.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name VERNE can be found in the Cartulaire de l'abbaye de Redon, a collection of medieval charters from the Abbey of Redon in Brittany, dating back to the 9th century. The name appears in various spellings, such as "Verne," "Vernes," and "de Verne," indicating its presence in the region during that time.
The VERNE surname is also linked to several place names in France, such as Verne, a commune in the Indre department, and Vernes, a commune in the Doubs department. These place names likely originated from the same root word, referring to the presence of alder trees in those areas.
In the 13th century, a notable figure named Jean de Verne was a French knight who participated in the Seventh Crusade led by Louis IX. He is mentioned in historical accounts of the time, demonstrating the presence of the VERNE name among the nobility of that era.
Another prominent individual with the surname VERNE was Jules Verne, the famous French novelist and pioneer of the science fiction genre. Born in 1828 in Nantes, France, Verne's works, such as "Around the World in Eighty Days" and "Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea," have had a lasting impact on literature and popular culture.
In the 16th century, a record from the Parlement de Paris mentions a certain Nicolas Verne, a merchant from Rouen, France. This indicates that the VERNE surname was also present among the merchant class during the Renaissance period.
The VERNE name has also been associated with other notable figures throughout history, such as Horace Vernet, a French painter and sculptor born in 1789, and Adolphe Verne, a French politician and journalist who lived in the late 19th century.
While the surname VERNE has its roots in France and can be traced back to medieval times, it has since spread to other parts of the world through migration and cultural exchange, further contributing to its rich historical legacy.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Verne
Among Census respondents with the surname Verne, the largest self-reported group is White at 67.8%. The next largest groups are Black (21.0%) and Hispanic (8.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Verne 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 Verne surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White67.8% · 364
- Black or African American21.0% · 113
- Hispanic or Latino8.2% · 44
- Two or more races2.2% · 12
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Verne
Verne 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
#45,886
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 465
-51 bearers (-9.9%)
Per 100,000 0.16
Rank movement Down 5,867 places
2020
#43,339
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 537
+72 bearers (+15.5%)
Per 100,000 0.18
Rank movement Up 2,547 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #40,019 | 516 | 0.19 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #45,886 | 465 | 0.16 | -51 bearers (-9.9%) | Down 5,867 places |
| 2020 | #43,339 | 537 | 0.18 | +72 bearers (+15.5%) | Up 2,547 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 Verne 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 | #45,886 | #43,339 | 5.6% |
| Count | 465 | 537 | 15.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.16 | 0.18 | 12.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Verne bearers went from 465 to 537 (+15.5% change). The surname moved up 2,547 positions in the national ranking, going from #45,886 to #43,339.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Verne
FAQ
Verne surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Verne?
Name Census estimates that about 616 living Americans carry the surname Verne. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 556,419 residents.
How common is Verne?
Verne ranks #43,339 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.18 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 537 people with the surname Verne. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (616), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.18 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.18 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Verne.
Has Verne become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Verne went from 465 recorded bearers to 537. That is an increase of 72 (+15.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #45,886 to #43,339.
What does the Census say about the background of Verne?
Among Census respondents with the surname Verne, the largest self-reported group is White at 67.8%. The next largest groups are Black (21.0%) and Hispanic (8.2%). 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 Verne in the 2020 Census, accounting for 67.8% (364 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Verne appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (67.8%), Black (21.0%), Hispanic (8.2%). 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 Verne (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 Verne mean?
A surname potentially derived from French for alder tree or green fields. 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 Verne (0.18 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 Verne?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.