2000
#52,403
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 372
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.14
Very Rare Last name
Lehtonen
A Finnish surname meaning someone from a birch grove or wooded area.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 439 Americans carry the last name Lehtonen. That puts it at #57,414 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.13 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 780,762 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Lehtonen 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.
Bearers in the US
439
1 in 780,762
Census rank
#57,414
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
383
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 383 bearers of the surname Lehtonen in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.13 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 57414th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Lehtonen, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Two or More Races (2.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Lehtonen
The surname Lehtonen is of Finnish origin and dates back to the 16th century. It is derived from the Finnish word "lehto", which means a grove or a small forest. The name likely originated as a topographic surname, given to someone who lived near or in a small forested area.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname Lehtonen can be found in parish records from Finland in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. It was particularly common in the regions of Häme, Satakunta, and Uusimaa, which were densely forested areas at the time.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Yrjö Lehtonen, a farmer who lived in the village of Renko in the province of Häme in the late 16th century. Another early figure was Heikki Lehtonen, a merchant from Turku who was mentioned in trade records from the early 17th century.
During the 18th and 19th centuries, the surname Lehtonen became more widespread across Finland as families migrated to new areas. Notable individuals with this name include the Finnish writer and poet Joel Lehtonen (1881-1934), who was known for his works exploring themes of Finnish identity and rural life.
Another prominent bearer of the name was Yrjö Lehtonen (1897-1966), a Finnish journalist and politician who served as a member of the Finnish parliament and was actively involved in the workers' movement.
In the 20th century, Mauno Lehtonen (1920-2002) was a Finnish artist and sculptor known for his abstract works and sculptures in public spaces. Risto Lehtonen (1945-2008) was a Finnish actor and director who appeared in numerous films and television shows throughout his career.
The surname Lehtonen continues to be common in Finland today, with many families tracing their roots back to these earlier bearers of the name from different regions of the country.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lehtonen
Among Census respondents with the surname Lehtonen, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Two or More Races (2.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Lehtonen 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 Lehtonen surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.5% · 358
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 14
- Two or more races2.1% · 8
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 2
- Black or African American0.3% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Lehtonen
Lehtonen 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
#53,204
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 389
+17 bearers (+4.6%)
Per 100,000 0.13
Rank movement Down 801 places
2020
#57,414
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 383
-6 bearers (-1.5%)
Per 100,000 0.13
Rank movement Down 4,210 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #52,403 | 372 | 0.14 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #53,204 | 389 | 0.13 | +17 bearers (+4.6%) | Down 801 places |
| 2020 | #57,414 | 383 | 0.13 | -6 bearers (-1.5%) | Down 4,210 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 Lehtonen 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 | #53,204 | #57,414 | -7.9% |
| Count | 389 | 383 | -1.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.13 | 0.13 | -1.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Lehtonen bearers went from 389 to 383 (-1.5% change). The surname moved down 4,210 positions in the national ranking, going from #53,204 to #57,414.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Lehtonen
FAQ
Lehtonen surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Lehtonen?
Name Census estimates that about 439 living Americans carry the surname Lehtonen. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 780,762 residents.
How common is Lehtonen?
Lehtonen ranks #57,414 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.13 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 383 people with the surname Lehtonen. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (439), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.13 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.13 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Lehtonen.
Has Lehtonen become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Lehtonen went from 389 recorded bearers to 383. That is a decrease of 6 (-1.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #53,204 to #57,414.
What does the Census say about the background of Lehtonen?
Among Census respondents with the surname Lehtonen, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Two or More Races (2.1%). 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 Lehtonen in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.5% (358 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Lehtonen appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.5%), Hispanic (3.7%), Two or More Races (2.1%). 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 Lehtonen (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 Lehtonen mean?
A Finnish surname meaning someone from a birch grove or wooded area. 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 Lehtonen (0.13 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 many people have the last name Lehtonen?
See how many people are called Lehtonen on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.