2000
#3,098
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 10,731
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.98
Uncommon Last name
Lively
Derived from a nickname for a lively or active person, or from a place name meaning "leafy meadow."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 12,207 Americans carry the last name Lively. That puts it at #3,317 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.56 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 28,079 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Lively 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 Lively with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
12K
1 in 28,079
Census rank
#3,317
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
11K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 10,645 bearers of the surname Lively in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.56 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3317th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Lively, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.1%. The next largest groups are Black (5.9%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Lively
The surname Lively is believed to have originated in England during the medieval period. It is thought to be derived from the Old English word "lif" meaning "life" or "lively", referring to someone with a spirited or energetic demeanor.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in the Domesday Book of 1086, where a person named Lifwine is mentioned as holding land in Oxfordshire. This suggests that the name, or a variant of it, existed in England before the Norman Conquest.
In the 13th century, the name is found in various records with spellings such as Liflie, Livelie, and Lyvely. These variations likely arose due to the lack of standardized spelling during this time period.
The name Lively can also be traced back to certain place names in England, such as Lively in Shropshire and Lively Green in Hampshire. It is possible that some individuals adopted the surname based on their association with these localities.
Notable individuals who bore the surname Lively include Sir Michael Lively (c. 1570-1628), an English landowner and Member of Parliament for Weymouth and Melcombe Regis. Another prominent figure was John Lively (1692-1766), a British architect and surveyor who designed several churches and country houses in the Georgian style.
In the 18th century, Edward Lively (1723-1808) was a renowned English engraver and printmaker, known for his intricate illustrations of landscapes and architectural subjects. His works are held in collections at the British Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name in America is found in the records of William Lively, who arrived in Virginia in 1635. Another early American bearer of the name was Thomas Lively, who settled in Maryland in the late 17th century.
During the 19th century, John Lively (1825-1892) was a notable American politician and lawyer who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Delaware.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lively
Among Census respondents with the surname Lively, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.1%. The next largest groups are Black (5.9%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Lively 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 Lively surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White85.1% · 9,057
- Black or African American5.9% · 631
- Two or more races4.3% · 461
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 372
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 67
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 57
Timeline
Historical Census data for Lively
Lively 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
#3,279
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 11,026
+295 bearers (+2.7%)
Per 100,000 3.74
Rank movement Down 181 places
2020
#3,317
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 10,645
-381 bearers (-3.5%)
Per 100,000 3.56
Rank movement Down 38 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,098 | 10,731 | 3.98 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,279 | 11,026 | 3.74 | +295 bearers (+2.7%) | Down 181 places |
| 2020 | #3,317 | 10,645 | 3.56 | -381 bearers (-3.5%) | Down 38 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 Lively 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 | #3,279 | #3,317 | -1.2% |
| Count | 11,026 | 10,645 | -3.5% |
| Per 100K | 3.74 | 3.56 | -4.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Lively bearers went from 11,026 to 10,645 (-3.5% change). The surname moved down 38 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,279 to #3,317.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Lively
FAQ
Lively surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Lively?
Name Census estimates that about 12,207 living Americans carry the surname Lively. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 28,079 residents.
How common is Lively?
Lively ranks #3,317 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.56 per 100,000 residents, which is about 4 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 10,645 people with the surname Lively. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (12,207), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.56 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.56 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 4 of them to have the surname Lively.
Has Lively become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Lively went from 11,026 recorded bearers to 10,645. That is a decrease of 381 (-3.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,279 to #3,317.
What does the Census say about the background of Lively?
Among Census respondents with the surname Lively, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.1%. The next largest groups are Black (5.9%) and Two or More Races (4.3%). 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 Lively in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.1% (9,057 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Lively appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (85.1%), Black (5.9%), Two or More Races (4.3%). 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 Lively (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 Lively mean?
Derived from a nickname for a lively or active person, or from a place name meaning "leafy meadow." 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 Lively (3.56 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 Lively?
Want to know how many people are called Lively? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.