The Peltier surname
In the 2010 U.S. Census, 7,140 people carried this name — #4,927 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 41,300 people counted. That is up 8% from 6,633 in 2000.
Where the name comes from
The origin of the Peltier surname
A surname, notably of Jean Charles Athanase Peltier, French physicist who discovered the Peltier effect.
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Peltier» (French), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.
In France’s civil register
France’s register of deaths holds 6,563 people named Peltier.
62 of them were born outside France. Those born in France came from 89 départements, most often Maine-et-Loire.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they were born
Fichier des personnes décédées, INSEE — Licence Ouverte 2.0 · deaths recorded in France since 1970, by place of birth.
In Belgium’s population register
At least 136 people named Peltier live in Belgium.
Statbel only publishes a name in a municipality when five or more people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Hainaut.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they live today
Statbel (Statistics Belgium), family names of the population by municipality, 1 January 2026 — CC BY 4.0.
In Switzerland’s population statistics
83 people named Peltier live in Switzerland.
They live in 9 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Vaud.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they live today
Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO), «Surnames of the permanent resident population by canton», 2025, opendata.swiss/en/dataset/nachnamen-der-standigen-wohnbevolkerung-nach-kanton3 · names with fewer than 3 bearers in a canton are not published.
In Argentina’s national register
At least 74 people named Peltier live in Argentina.
RENAPER only publishes a name in a province when more than ten people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Santa Fe.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they live today
RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.
In print
Peltier in American newspapers,
1847–1925.
Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 17,255 pages in all carry the name.
Who carried it
People named Peltier,
with a public archive behind them.
-
Jean Charles Athanase Peltier 1785–1845 · physicist -
Toussaint Peltier 1792–1854 · lawyer -
Célestin Peltier 1804–1883 · industrialist -
Justine Lefebvre 1862–1956 · painter -
Patrick Peltier 1865–1936 · military personnel -
Joseph Peltier d. 1821 · voyageurs
Wikidata and Wikimedia Commons (CC0) · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.
Nearby in the index
Surnames next to Peltier.
- Pelon 284 · U.S. census
- Peloquin 2,988 · U.S. census
- Pelosi 1,309 · U.S. census
- Peloso 586 · U.S. census
- Pelot 573 · U.S. census
- Pelotte 242 · U.S. census
- Peluso 3,712 · U.S. census
- Pelzer 2,183 · U.S. census
- Pen 1,438 · U.S. census
- Penalba 180 · U.S. census
- Penalver 629 · U.S. census
- Penaranda 1,181 · U.S. census
When the index is not enough
This page says where Peltier is.
A volume says what happened to it.
Every page in the index is free and stays free. The Heritage Volume is the long form: the full paper trail, the arms, the crossing — bound, and yours.