Explore the Family Name Despard
The meaning of Despard
French Canadian and English (of French Huguenot origin): altered form of French Despars, probably a habitational name, with fused preposition d(e) ‘of’, denoting someone from Espars, a place in Bléharies (Hainault), in Wallonia, Belgium. The surname Despars is very rare in France (today it is found only in Manche) and is not found in Belgium. History: The Huguenot Philip d’Espard escaped to England after the Massacre of Saint Bartholomew in 1572. He was later sent to Ireland, and his grandson William was Colonel of Engineers during the reign of William III. Some characteristic forenames: French Mathieu.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Despard in the United States?
Based on the Decennial U.S. Census, the popularity of the surname Despard experienced a slight decrease between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, it was ranked 73,659th in popularity, but dropped to a rank of 77,788 in 2010, marking a 5.61% decrease. Despite this drop in rank, the actual count of people with the Despard surname marginally increased from 245 in 2000 to 246 in 2010. Consequently, the proportion of individuals with this surname per 100,000 also decreased by 11.11% during this decade.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #73,659 | #77,788 | -5.61% |
| Count | 245 | 246 | 0.41% |
| Proportion per 100k | 0.09 | 0.08 | -11.11% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Despard
Turning to ethnic identity, data from the Decennial U.S. Census reveals that the majority of individuals with the Despard surname identify as White, accounting for 97.14% in 2000 and slightly decreasing to 96.34% in 2010. The Hispanic representation within the Despard surname holders saw an increase of 59.31%, from 2.04% in 2000 to 3.25% in 2010. There were no recorded changes in other ethnic identities such as Asian/Pacific Islander, Black, two or more races, or American Indian and Alaskan Native, with some data suppressed for privacy reasons.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 97.14% | 96.34% | -0.82% |
| Hispanic | 2.04% | 3.25% | 59.31% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Two or More Races | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Black | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0% | 0% | 0% |