2000
#363
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 78,323
First available Census row
Per 100,000 29.03
Uncommon Last name
Love
An English surname derived from the Old English lufu, referring to a passionate or amorous person.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 95,971 Americans carry the last name Love. That puts it at #371 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 28.00 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 3,571 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Love 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 Love with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
96K
1 in 3,571
Census rank
#371
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
28.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
84K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 83,691 bearers of the surname Love in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 28.00 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 371st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Love, the largest self-reported group is White at 53.8%. The next largest groups are Black (35.9%) and Two or More Races (5.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Love
The surname Love is of English origin and is believed to have derived from the Old English word "lufu," which means "love" or "affection." This surname likely originated as a nickname or descriptive name for someone who was perceived as being affectionate or loving.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname Love can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a comprehensive record of landowners and tenants in England commissioned by William the Conqueror. In this record, there are entries for individuals with the surname Love, indicating that the name was already in use by the late 11th century.
During the Middle Ages, the surname Love was particularly prevalent in the counties of Essex, Suffolk, and Norfolk in eastern England. Some early examples of people with this surname include John Love, who was recorded in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire in 1166, and William Love, who was mentioned in the Curia Regis Rolls of Nottinghamshire in 1199.
Over the centuries, the surname Love has also been associated with various place names, such as Lovelane in Oxfordshire and Loveday in Buckinghamshire. These place names may have influenced the spelling and pronunciation of the surname in certain regions.
Notable individuals with the surname Love throughout history include:
1. Nicholas Love (c. 1360 - c. 1423), an English Carthusian monk and religious writer best known for his translation of the pseudo-Bonaventuran work "The Mirrour of the Blessed Lyf of Jesu Christ."
2. Robert Love (c. 1608 - 1664), a Scottish Presbyterian minister and covenanter who was executed for his opposition to the religious policies of the Stuart monarchy.
3. John Love (1695 - 1750), a British naval officer and colonial administrator who served as the 14th Governor of Newfoundland from 1743 to 1748.
4. James Love (1770 - 1853), a Scottish architect and civil engineer who designed numerous bridges, harbors, and public buildings in Scotland during the early 19th century.
5. Albert Love (1842 - 1927), an American businessman and philanthropist who co-founded the JCPenney department store chain and was actively involved in promoting education and social welfare initiatives.
While the surname Love has a long and interesting history, it is important to note that this report focuses solely on the surname itself and does not cover its use as a first or given name.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Love
Among Census respondents with the surname Love, the largest self-reported group is White at 53.8%. The next largest groups are Black (35.9%) and Two or More Races (5.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Love 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 Love surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White53.8% · 45,045
- Black or African American35.9% · 30,011
- Two or more races5.3% · 4,441
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 3,117
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 611
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 466
Timeline
Historical Census data for Love
Love 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
#385
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 82,873
+4,550 bearers (+5.8%)
Per 100,000 28.09
Rank movement Down 22 places
2020
#371
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 83,691
+818 bearers (+1.0%)
Per 100,000 28.00
Rank movement Up 14 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #363 | 78,323 | 29.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #385 | 82,873 | 28.09 | +4,550 bearers (+5.8%) | Down 22 places |
| 2020 | #371 | 83,691 | 28.00 | +818 bearers (+1.0%) | Up 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 Love 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 | #385 | #371 | 3.6% |
| Count | 82,873 | 83,691 | 1.0% |
| Per 100K | 28.09 | 28.00 | -0.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Love bearers went from 82,873 to 83,691 (+1.0% change). The surname moved up 14 positions in the national ranking, going from #385 to #371.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Love
FAQ
Love surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Love?
Name Census estimates that about 95,971 living Americans carry the surname Love. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 3,571 residents.
How common is Love?
Love ranks #371 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 28.00 per 100,000 residents, which is about 28 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 83,691 people with the surname Love. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (95,971), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 28 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 28.00 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 28 of them to have the surname Love.
Has Love become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Love went from 82,873 recorded bearers to 83,691. That is an increase of 818 (+1.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #385 to #371.
What does the Census say about the background of Love?
Among Census respondents with the surname Love, the largest self-reported group is White at 53.8%. The next largest groups are Black (35.9%) and Two or More Races (5.3%). 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 Love in the 2020 Census, accounting for 53.8% (45,045 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Love appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (53.8%), Black (35.9%), Two or More Races (5.3%). 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 Love (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 Love mean?
An English surname derived from the Old English lufu, referring to a passionate or amorous person. 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 Love (28.00 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 Americans have the surname Love?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.