2000
#136,783
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Laak
A Dutch surname likely derived from a topographic name referring to a grove or meadow.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 119 Americans carry the last name Laak. That puts it at #153,590 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,880,289 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Laak 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
119
1 in 2,880,289
Census rank
#153,590
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
104
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 104 bearers of the surname Laak in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 153590th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Laak, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Laak
The surname LAAK is believed to have originated in the Netherlands and northern Germany during the Middle Ages. It is thought to derive from the Old Dutch word "lak," meaning a small body of water or a pond. This suggests that the name may have initially been used to identify someone who lived near a lake or pond.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the LAAK surname can be found in the Oorkondenboek van Holland en Zeeland, a collection of historical documents from the Netherlands dating back to the 13th century. Here, the name is spelled "Lacke" and refers to a person named Johannes Lacke in a document from 1285.
In the 14th century, the surname appears in various forms in German records, such as "Lack" and "Lacke." These variations likely arose due to regional dialects and differences in spelling conventions at the time.
The LAAK surname has also been associated with certain place names, particularly in the Netherlands. For instance, the village of Laak in the province of Gelderland may have contributed to the name's development and spread.
One notable historical figure with the surname LAAK was Adriaen Hendriksz Laak, a Dutch painter who lived from around 1580 to 1637. He was known for his still-life and genre paintings, and his works can be found in collections across Europe.
Another person of note was Johannes Laak, a German theologian and author who lived from 1631 to 1696. He wrote several influential works on theology and philosophy during the Baroque period.
In the 18th century, the LAAK surname can be found in records from various parts of Europe, including Germany, the Netherlands, and Belgium. One individual of significance was Johann Laak, a German composer and organist who lived from 1724 to 1805.
In the 19th century, the name appears in records from countries such as the United States and Canada, indicating that individuals with the LAAK surname had begun to emigrate from Europe. One notable figure was Peter Laak, a Dutch-American architect who lived from 1826 to 1892 and designed several prominent buildings in New York City.
Finally, in the early 20th century, there was a German politician named Heinrich Laak who served as a member of the Reichstag from 1920 to 1933. He was born in 1868 and died in 1942.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Laak
Among Census respondents with the surname Laak, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Laak 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 Laak surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.3% · 96
- Two or more races4.8% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.9% · 2
- Hispanic or Latino1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Laak
Laak 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
#144,141
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
+2 bearers (+1.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 7,358 places
2020
#153,590
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 104
-11 bearers (-9.6%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 9,449 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #136,783 | 113 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #144,141 | 115 | 0.04 | +2 bearers (+1.8%) | Down 7,358 places |
| 2020 | #153,590 | 104 | 0.03 | -11 bearers (-9.6%) | Down 9,449 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 Laak 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 | #144,141 | #153,590 | -6.6% |
| Count | 115 | 104 | -9.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -13.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Laak bearers went from 115 to 104 (-9.6% change). The surname moved down 9,449 positions in the national ranking, going from #144,141 to #153,590.
FAQ
Laak surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Laak?
Name Census estimates that about 119 living Americans carry the surname Laak. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,880,289 residents.
How common is Laak?
Laak ranks #153,590 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 104 people with the surname Laak. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (119), 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 Laak.
Has Laak become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Laak went from 115 recorded bearers to 104. That is a decrease of 11 (-9.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #144,141 to #153,590.
What does the Census say about the background of Laak?
Among Census respondents with the surname Laak, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.9%). 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 Laak in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.3% (96 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Laak appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.3%), Two or More Races (4.8%), Asian/Pacific Islander (1.9%). 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 Laak (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 Laak mean?
A Dutch surname likely derived from a topographic name referring to a grove or 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 Laak (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 have the last name Laak?
Want to know how common the surname Laak is? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.