Larnell
An English given name derived from the Norman French pronunciation of Laurent (Laurence).
Name Census estimates that about 732 living Americans carry the first name Larnell. It is a predominantly male name (99.4% of registrations). The average person named Larnell today is around 49 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Larnell births was 1990 (26 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Larnell. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
732
~ 1 in 468,244 Americans
Peak year
1990
26 babies that year
Average age
49
years old
2017 SSA rank
#4,762
Tracked since 1918
Census
Larnell in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 601 people with the first name Larnell, which placed it at #18,056 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#18,056
National first-name rank
People counted
601
601 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
88.4% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Larnell
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Larnell is Black at 88.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.5%) and White (3.2%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Larnell 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 name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Larnell at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American88.4% · 531
- Two or more races4.5% · 27
- White3.2% · 19
- Hispanic or Latino1.5% · 9
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.5% · 9
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 6
Gender
Gender distribution for Larnell
Out of the 887 babies given the name Larnell since 1880, 99.4% were registered as male. The name sits firmly on the male side of the spectrum, with only a handful of female registrations across the entire dataset.
Larnell as a male name
- Ranked #9,354 in 2017
- 8 male births in 2017
- Peak: 1990 (26 births)
Larnell as a female name
- Ranked #4,762 in 1932
- 5 female births in 1932
- Peak: 1932 (5 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Larnell leans strongly male. 551 people counted with this name were male (93.4%), compared with 39 female bearers (6.6%).
Popularity
Larnell: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Larnell from the 1910s through to the 2010s, spanning 11 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1950s, with 145 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1950s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Larnell by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Larnell during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Larnells live
The SSA's state-level files cover 5 states and territories. Illinois, Michigan, District of Columbia recorded the most babies named Larnell, while Virginia, Tennessee, District of Columbia recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 10 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Larnell
The name Larnell has its origins in the English language, with roots that can be traced back to the medieval period. It is believed to be a combination of two Old English words: "lar," meaning "learning" or "wisdom," and "nell," a diminutive suffix often used to form affectionate nicknames.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Larnell can be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of land and property commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. The name appears as "Larnellus," referring to a landowner in the county of Lincolnshire.
During the Middle Ages, the name Larnell was particularly popular among the nobility and landed gentry, possibly due to its association with scholarship and intellectual pursuits. Notable historical figures who bore this name include Larnell de Montfort (c. 1240-1305), a prominent nobleman and military commander who fought in the Barons' War against King Henry III.
In the 16th century, the name gained popularity among the emerging middle class and was often used by families aspiring to social mobility. One such individual was Larnell Whittington (1524-1579), a successful merchant and philanthropist who funded the construction of a school and almshouses in his hometown of Lichfield, England.
The name Larnell also found its way into religious and literary circles. Larnell Cranmer (1489-1556), the Archbishop of Canterbury during the reign of Henry VIII, played a significant role in the English Reformation and is remembered for his contribution to the Book of Common Prayer. In the realm of literature, Larnell Jonson (1572-1637), a contemporary of William Shakespeare, was a renowned playwright and poet, known for his satirical plays and masques.
Another notable figure was Larnell Wilberforce (1759-1833), a British politician and philanthropist who was instrumental in the abolition of the slave trade in the British Empire. His tireless efforts and oratory skills inspired a generation of reformers and helped shape the course of history.
While the name Larnell has fallen out of widespread use in modern times, it still holds a place in history as a name imbued with connotations of wisdom, intellect, and nobility.
People
Larnell + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Larnell as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with L
Other first names starting with L with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Larnell: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Larnell?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 732 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Larnell going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 468,244 US residents.
Is Larnell a common name?
We classify Larnell as "Very Rare". It ranks above 87.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 887 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Larnell most popular?
The single biggest year for Larnell was 1990, when 26 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Larnell is about 49 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Larnell in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 601 people with the name Larnell, or 0.20 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #18,056 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Larnell in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Larnell?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Larnell leans strongly male. 551 people counted with this name were male (93.4%), compared with 39 female bearers (6.6%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Larnell?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Larnell is Black at 88.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.5%) and White (3.2%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Larnell most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Larnell in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.4% (531 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Larnell in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Larnell a male name?
Yes, 99.4% of people registered as Larnell in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Larnell still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Larnell in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Larnell can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How many people are named Larnell?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.