2000
#5,858
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,415
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.01
Rare Last name
Levinson
Jewish occupational surname referring to a descendant of the Levites, a tribe of religious officials in ancient Israel.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,369 Americans carry the last name Levinson. That puts it at #6,919 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.57 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 63,840 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Levinson 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 Levinson with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
5.4K
1 in 63,840
Census rank
#6,919
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,682 bearers of the surname Levinson in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.57 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6919th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Levinson, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.8%) and Two or More Races (2.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Levinson
The surname Levinson is of Jewish origin, derived from the Hebrew male given name Levi, which means "attached" or "joined." The name is believed to have originated in medieval Germany, specifically in the Rhineland region, where many Jewish communities were established during the Middle Ages.
The earliest known record of the Levinson surname dates back to the late 13th century in the city of Mainz, where a man named Moses ben Levi (Moses son of Levi) was documented in a legal document. Over time, the patronymic "ben Levi" evolved into the surname Levinson, indicating a direct lineage from the biblical figure Levi.
One of the earliest notable individuals with the Levinson surname was Rabbi Judah ben Eliezer Levinson (c. 1520-1585), a prominent Talmudic scholar and kabbalist who lived in Krakow, Poland. He was known for his work "Sefer ha-Mikhtam," which explored mystical interpretations of the Torah.
In the 17th century, the Levinson family spread across Europe, with members settling in various communities. One notable figure was Rabbi Yair Hayyim Bacharach Levinson (1638-1702), a renowned rabbinical authority who served as the Chief Rabbi of Worms, Germany.
Another famous Levinson was Isaac Levinson (1688-1756), a Dutch-Jewish poet, and playwright who wrote in both Hebrew and Dutch. His works, such as "Bikkurei ha-Ittim" and "Mas'at Binyamin," explored Jewish themes and experiences in the Netherlands.
In the 19th century, the Levinson surname gained prominence in the United States with the arrival of Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe. One notable figure was Salmon P. Levinson (1865-1944), a prominent lawyer and philanthropist who served as the president of the Chicago Board of Education and played a significant role in the development of Jewish education in the city.
Throughout history, the Levinson surname has been associated with various place names, including Levinsohn, Levinsonn, and Lewinson, reflecting regional variations and spelling variations over time. However, the core meaning and origin of the name have remained rooted in its Jewish heritage and the biblical figure of Levi.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Levinson
Among Census respondents with the surname Levinson, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.8%) and Two or More Races (2.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Levinson 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 Levinson surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.0% · 4,356
- Hispanic or Latino3.8% · 177
- Two or more races2.0% · 95
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 35
- Black or African American0.4% · 17
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.0% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Levinson
Levinson 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
#6,579
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,147
-268 bearers (-4.9%)
Per 100,000 1.74
Rank movement Down 721 places
2020
#6,919
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,682
-465 bearers (-9.0%)
Per 100,000 1.57
Rank movement Down 340 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,858 | 5,415 | 2.01 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,579 | 5,147 | 1.74 | -268 bearers (-4.9%) | Down 721 places |
| 2020 | #6,919 | 4,682 | 1.57 | -465 bearers (-9.0%) | Down 340 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 Levinson 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 | #6,579 | #6,919 | -5.2% |
| Count | 5,147 | 4,682 | -9.0% |
| Per 100K | 1.74 | 1.57 | -10.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Levinson bearers went from 5,147 to 4,682 (-9.0% change). The surname moved down 340 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,579 to #6,919.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Levinson
FAQ
Levinson surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Levinson?
Name Census estimates that about 5,369 living Americans carry the surname Levinson. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 63,840 residents.
How common is Levinson?
Levinson ranks #6,919 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.57 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 4,682 people with the surname Levinson. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,369), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.57 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.57 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Levinson.
Has Levinson become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Levinson went from 5,147 recorded bearers to 4,682. That is a decrease of 465 (-9.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #6,579 to #6,919.
What does the Census say about the background of Levinson?
Among Census respondents with the surname Levinson, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.8%) and Two or More Races (2.0%). 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 Levinson in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.0% (4,356 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Levinson appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.0%), Hispanic (3.8%), Two or More Races (2.0%). 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 Levinson (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 Levinson mean?
Jewish occupational surname referring to a descendant of the Levites, a tribe of religious officials in ancient Israel. 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 Levinson (1.57 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 surname Levinson?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.