2000
#219
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 124,321
First available Census row
Per 100,000 46.09
Common Last name
Lawrence
An English locational surname derived from a place name meaning "stream" or "boundary stream" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 142,710 Americans carry the last name Lawrence. That puts it at #246 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 41.64 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,402 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Lawrence surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Lawrence with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
143K
1 in 2,402
Census rank
#246
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
41.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
124K
common in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 124,450 bearers of the surname Lawrence in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 41.64 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 246th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Lawrence, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.5%. The next largest groups are Black (24.3%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Lawrence
The surname Lawrence is of Anglo-Norman French origin, deriving from the personal name Laurence, itself coming from the Latin name Laurentius. This Latin name was initially a nickname relating to someone from Laurentum, an ancient city in Italy renowned for its laurel trees.
Lawrence first appeared as a surname in England after the Norman Conquest of 1066. Early records show variations like Laurence, Laurens, and Lawrance as families adopted hereditary surnames. It was particularly prevalent in counties like Gloucestershire, Somerset, and Essex.
One of the earliest known bearers was Godefridus Laurentii, recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 as a tenant in Wiltshire. Another early entry is Ralph Laurenz listed in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire in 1166.
In Scotland, the name traces back to the late 12th century with mentions of Hugh Laurence and William Laurence in Ayrshire charters from around 1200. The Lawrence family held lands in the Lothians region from the 13th century onwards.
Notable individuals with this surname include Sir Robert Lawrence (c.1298-1352), Lord High Treasurer of England under Edward III, and Henry Lawrence (1600-1664), an English soldier, writer and President of Cromwell's Council of State.
Other prominent bearers are Sir Thomas Lawrence (1769-1830), the acclaimed English painter and president of the Royal Academy, and Sir John Laird Mair Lawrence (1811-1879), Viceroy of India from 1864 to 1869 who helped suppress the Indian Rebellion of 1857.
A place name link exists with the village of Lawrence in Somerset, recorded as Laurencia in the Domesday survey, likely derived from the personal name Lawrence or a Norman landowner called Laurent.
The varied spellings of this distinguished surname over centuries reflect its widespread adoption across Britain from Anglo-Norman roots, with many notable bearers playing important roles throughout history.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lawrence
Among Census respondents with the surname Lawrence, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.5%. The next largest groups are Black (24.3%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Lawrence bearers 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 surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Lawrence surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White65.5% · 81,549
- Black or African American24.3% · 30,206
- Two or more races4.6% · 5,681
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 4,624
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 1,231
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 1,159
Timeline
Historical Census data for Lawrence
Lawrence appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#232
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 129,699
+5,378 bearers (+4.3%)
Per 100,000 43.97
Rank movement Down 13 places
2020
#246
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 124,450
-5,249 bearers (-4.0%)
Per 100,000 41.64
Rank movement Down 14 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #219 | 124,321 | 46.09 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #232 | 129,699 | 43.97 | +5,378 bearers (+4.3%) | Down 13 places |
| 2020 | #246 | 124,450 | 41.64 | -5,249 bearers (-4.0%) | Down 14 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Lawrence surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #232 | #246 | -6.0% |
| Count | 129,699 | 124,450 | -4.0% |
| Per 100K | 43.97 | 41.64 | -5.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Lawrence bearers went from 129,699 to 124,450 (-4.0% change). The surname moved down 14 positions in the national ranking, going from #232 to #246.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Lawrence
FAQ
Lawrence surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Lawrence?
Name Census estimates that about 142,710 living Americans carry the surname Lawrence. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,402 residents.
How common is Lawrence?
Lawrence ranks #246 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Common." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 41.64 per 100,000 residents, which is about 42 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 124,450 people with the surname Lawrence. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (142,710), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 41.64 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 41.64 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 42 of them to have the surname Lawrence.
Has Lawrence become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Lawrence went from 129,699 recorded bearers to 124,450. That is a decrease of 5,249 (-4.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #232 to #246.
What does the Census say about the background of Lawrence?
Among Census respondents with the surname Lawrence, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.5%. The next largest groups are Black (24.3%) and Two or More Races (4.6%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Lawrence in the 2020 Census, accounting for 65.5% (81,549 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Lawrence appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (65.5%), Black (24.3%), Two or More Races (4.6%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Lawrence (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Lawrence mean?
An English locational surname derived from a place name meaning "stream" or "boundary stream" in Old English. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Lawrence (41.64 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How common is the surname Lawrence?
You can see how many people have the last name Lawrence on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.