Explore the Family Name Charlemagne

The meaning of Charlemagne

French and West Indian (mainly Haiti and Saint Lucia): from the French name of the great Frankish ruler, the Emperor Charlemagne (c.742–814), composed of the personal name Charles and Old French magne ‘great’.

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

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

Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the surname Charlemagne has grown in popularity over a decade. In 2000, it ranked 57,985 in popularity with a count of 328 people carrying the name. By 2010, the rank had jumped to 44,730, indicating a significant increase of about 22.86%. The count also rose by 46.34% to reach 480 individuals. This meant that for every 100,000 people, approximately 0.16 carried the Charlemagne surname in 2010, up from 0.12 in 2000, which is a growth of 33.33%.

20002010Change
Rank#57,985#44,73022.86%
Count32848046.34%
Proportion per 100k0.120.1633.33%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Charlemagne

As for ethnic identity, the data collected from the Decennial U.S. Census shows that the majority of individuals with the Charlemagne surname identified as Black in both 2000 and 2010. There was an 8.86% increase in this group over the decade, rising from 77.13% to 83.96%. However, the proportion of people identifying as having two or more races saw a substantial decrease of 74.97%, dropping from 9.15% to 2.29% during the same period. The Hispanic representation remained relatively stable with a slight 0.31% rise, while those identifying as White saw a modest increase of 2.46%. No individuals associated themselves with Asian/Pacific Islander or American Indian and Alaskan Native identities in either year.

20002010Change
Black77.13%83.96%8.86%
Hispanic9.76%9.79%0.31%
White3.66%3.75%2.46%
Two or More Races9.15%2.29%-74.97%
Asian/Pacific Islander0%0%0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0%0%0%