Luther Vandross
There are approximately 1 people named Luther Vandross living in the United States today. That makes this name combination very rare, occurring at a rate of about 1 in 342,754,338 Americans.
This estimate combines SSA birth records for the first name Luther with Census Bureau frequency data for the surname Vandross. Below you will find a breakdown of both names, including popularity trends, gender data, and ancestry information.
Expected bearers
1
1 in 342,754,338
Named Luther
23K
Alive today
Named Vandross
206
Alive today
US population
343M
Denominator
Estimated living: 23K
Rarity: Uncommon
Gender: Male
Peak year: 1922
Average age: 62
Estimated bearers: 206
Rarity: Very Rare
Census rank: #98,982
Per 100K: 0.06
Top ancestry: Black (90.7%)
First name trend
Luther: popularity over time
Year-by-year SSA birth registrations for the first name Luther. The peak year was 1922 with 1,490 births. The average person named Luther today is 62 years old.
Babies born per year
Ethnicity
Ancestry of the Vandross surname
Self-reported race and ethnicity breakdown for people with the surname Vandross, from the 2010 US Census Bureau. The largest group is Black at 90.7%.
- Black or African American90.7%
- Hispanic or Latino4.9%
- Unknown or suppressed4.4%
Methodology
How we calculated this
The first name Luther has a living-bearer frequency of 0.0067% of the US population, based on 22,977 estimated living Americans carrying this first name (from SSA birth records going back to 1880, adjusted for mortality using CDC life tables).
The surname Vandross appears at a rate of 0.06 per 100,000 residents in the 2010 Census Bureau surname file, which translates to a frequency of 0.0001%.
Multiplying these two independent frequencies against the current US population of 342,754,338 gives an expected count of approximately 1 people with the full name Luther Vandross. This assumes statistical independence between first and last names, which is a simplification but produces reasonable estimates for most combinations.
Related
Other people named Luther
FAQ
Luther Vandross: questions and answers
How many people are named Luther Vandross?
We estimate approximately 1 people in the United States share the full name Luther Vandross. That works out to about 1 in 342,754,338 Americans. This is calculated by combining the first-name frequency (0.0067%) with the surname frequency (0.06 per 100K) against the current US population.
How rare is the name Luther Vandross?
We classify Luther Vandross as "Very Rare". About 1 in 342,754,338 Americans share this exact first and last name combination.
Is Luther a male or female name?
Luther is predominantly male. Out of 67,297 total SSA registrations, 99.4% were male and 0.6% were female. See the full Luther profile for detailed gender data.
Where does this data come from?
First-name data comes from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files (1880 to 2024). Surname data comes from the 2010 US Census Bureau decennial surname tables. Living-bearer estimates use CDC actuarial life tables to adjust for mortality. Read the full methodology.