2010
#157,234
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 103
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.03
Very Rare Last name
Iloff
A surname derived from a place name or possibly a location-specific occupational reference.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 117 Americans carry the last name Iloff. That puts it at #154,755 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,929,524 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Iloff 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
117
1 in 2,929,524
Census rank
#154,755
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
102
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 102 bearers of the surname Iloff in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 154755th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Iloff, the largest self-reported group is White at 68.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (17.6%) and Two or More Races (10.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Iloff
The surname ILOFF has its origins in Russia, with the earliest known references dating back to the 16th century. It is believed to be a patronymic name derived from the Russian given name "Ilya" or its variant "Iloff". This name is ultimately derived from the Greek name "Elias", which means "Yahweh is God".
The ILOFF surname was initially concentrated in the regions of Central and Northern Russia, particularly in the areas around Moscow and Novgorod. It is possible that the name may have been influenced by the Old Church Slavonic language, which was widely used in religious texts and documents during that time period.
One of the earliest known records of the ILOFF name appears in a Russian census document from the late 16th century, which lists several families with this surname living in the village of Verkhovye, near the city of Tver.
In the 17th century, the ILOFF surname can be found in various historical records, including land ownership documents and parish registers. One notable individual from this era was Ivan Iloff, a merchant from the city of Nizhny Novgorod, who was active in the fur trade between Russia and the Baltic region in the 1650s.
During the 18th and 19th centuries, the ILOFF surname spread to other parts of the Russian Empire, including the territories of present-day Ukraine and Belarus. Some variations in the spelling of the name, such as "Ilov" and "Iliev", also emerged during this period.
One of the most prominent figures with the ILOFF surname was Mikhail Iloff (1801-1874), a Russian military officer who served in the Imperial Russian Army during the Napoleonic Wars and the Crimean War. He was awarded several honors for his bravery and leadership on the battlefield.
Another notable individual was Nikolai Iloff (1856-1925), a Russian chemist and academic who made significant contributions to the study of organic chemistry. He held a professorship at the University of St. Petersburg and published numerous scientific papers during his career.
In the 20th century, the ILOFF surname continued to be found throughout Russia and the former Soviet Union. One person of note was Andrei Iloff (1920-2002), a Russian-born artist and sculptor who was known for his works depicting scenes from Russian folklore and mythology.
The ILOFF surname has also been carried by individuals in other parts of the world, likely due to emigration from Russia and the Soviet Union in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. However, the name remains most strongly associated with its Russian origins and the historical regions where it first emerged.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Iloff
Among Census respondents with the surname Iloff, the largest self-reported group is White at 68.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (17.6%) and Two or More Races (10.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Iloff 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 Iloff surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White68.6% · 70
- Hispanic or Latino17.6% · 18
- Two or more races10.8% · 11
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.9% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Iloff
Iloff appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#154,755
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
-1 bearers (-1.0%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Up 2,479 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #157,234 | 103 | 0.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #154,755 | 102 | 0.03 | -1 bearers (-1.0%) | Up 2,479 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 Iloff 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 | #157,234 | #154,755 | 1.6% |
| Count | 103 | 102 | -1.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.03 | 13.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Iloff bearers went from 103 to 102 (-1.0% change). The surname moved up 2,479 positions in the national ranking, going from #157,234 to #154,755.
FAQ
Iloff surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Iloff?
Name Census estimates that about 117 living Americans carry the surname Iloff. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,929,524 residents.
How common is Iloff?
Iloff ranks #154,755 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 102 people with the surname Iloff. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (117), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Iloff.
Has Iloff become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Iloff went from 103 recorded bearers to 102. That is a decrease of 1 (-1.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #157,234 to #154,755.
What does the Census say about the background of Iloff?
Among Census respondents with the surname Iloff, the largest self-reported group is White at 68.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (17.6%) and Two or More Races (10.8%). 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 Iloff in the 2020 Census, accounting for 68.6% (70 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Iloff appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (68.6%), Hispanic (17.6%), Two or More Races (10.8%). 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 Iloff (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 Iloff mean?
A surname derived from a place name or possibly a location-specific occupational reference. 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 Iloff (0.03 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 share the surname Iloff?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.