Explore the Family Name Barnacle

The meaning of Barnacle

English: 1. perhaps from Middle English bernacle, barnakyll, a diminutive of bernak, from Old French bernac ‘powerful bit or twitch’, used to restrain a restive horse or ass, which was also used as an instrument of torture. The term may have been applied as a nickname for a tamer of restive horses, for a man with an unruly temperament, or for a torturer. 2. perhaps a nickname for someone thought to resemble a barnacle goose (Middle English bernacle) in some way.

Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.

How common is the last name Barnacle in the United States?

Based on the Decennial U.S. Census, the surname Barnacle has seen a rise in popularity from 2000 to 2010. In 2000, it ranked as the 146,011th most popular last name while it moved up to the 130,610th spot in 2010. This constitutes an increase of approximately 10.55%. The count also increased from 104 individuals with this surname in 2000 to 130 in 2010, marking a 25% increase. However, the proportion per 100,000 people remained constant at 0.04.

	2000	2010	Change
Rank	#146,011	#130,610	10.55%
Count	104	130	25%
Proportion per 100k	0.04	0.04	0%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Barnacle

In terms of ethnic identity, the Decennial U.S. Census data shows that nearly all individuals with the surname Barnacle identified as White in both 2000 and 2010. Specifically, in 2000, 99% percent of those with the Barnacle last name identified as White, increasing slightly to 100% in 2010. Ethnic identities such as Asian/Pacific Islander, two or more races, Hispanic, Black, and American Indian and Alaskan Native were reported as 0.00 for both census years.

	2000	2010	Change
White	99%	100%	1.01%
Asian/Pacific Islander	0%	0%	0%
Two or More Races	0%	0%	0%
Hispanic	0%	0%	0%
Black	0%	0%	0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native	0%	0%	0%