2000
#34,308
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 625
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.23
Very Rare Last name
Laatsch
A surname originating from German meaning "forest" or "wooded area".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 773 Americans carry the last name Laatsch. That puts it at #35,833 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.23 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 443,408 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Laatsch 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
773
1 in 443,408
Census rank
#35,833
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
674
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 674 bearers of the surname Laatsch in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.23 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 35833rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Laatsch, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.9%) and Two or More Races (1.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Laatsch
The surname Laatsch originated in Germany, with its earliest known records dating back to the 13th century. It is derived from the Old German word 'laat', which means 'slow' or 'lazy'. This name was likely given as a nickname to someone who was perceived as being particularly sluggish or unhurried in their manner.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Laatsch can be found in the town records of Augsburg, Bavaria, from the year 1287. The name is spelled 'Laetsche' in this document, which was a common variation in the Middle Ages. Another early mention of the name appears in the Stadtbuch (town book) of Nuremberg, dating from 1345, where it is written as 'Lätsch'.
In the 15th century, the name Laatsch began to appear in various historical records across Germany. For instance, a Johannes Laatsch is listed as a resident of the town of Erfurt in 1432. A few decades later, in 1479, a Hans Laatsch is recorded as a landowner in the village of Oberstdorf, in the Allgäu region of Bavaria.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name Laatsch was Konrad Laatsch, a merchant and guild member in the city of Cologne. He was born around 1495 and lived until 1567. Another notable figure was Christoph Laatsch, a Lutheran pastor who served in the town of Zwickau, Saxony, in the late 16th century (1554-1619).
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the name Laatsch continued to be found throughout various regions of Germany. In 1673, a Johann Laatsch was recorded as a landowner in the village of Rückersdorf, near Nuremberg. A century later, in 1782, a Friedrich Laatsch was born in the town of Eisleben, Saxony-Anhalt, and went on to become a respected teacher and scholar.
Other historical figures with the surname Laatsch include the artist and engraver Johann Christian Laatsch (1738-1806), who was active in Dresden, and the writer and philosopher Karl Laatsch (1810-1889), who was born in Breslau, Silesia (now Wrocław, Poland).
Throughout its history, the Laatsch name has been closely associated with several towns and regions in Germany, particularly in Bavaria, Saxony, and the Rhineland. While variations in spelling were common in earlier centuries, the modern form 'Laatsch' has been the predominant version since the 19th century.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Laatsch
Among Census respondents with the surname Laatsch, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.9%) and Two or More Races (1.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Laatsch 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 Laatsch surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White96.3% · 649
- Hispanic or Latino1.9% · 13
- Two or more races1.6% · 11
- Black or African American0.1% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Laatsch
Laatsch 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
#35,203
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 640
+15 bearers (+2.4%)
Per 100,000 0.22
Rank movement Down 895 places
2020
#35,833
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 674
+34 bearers (+5.3%)
Per 100,000 0.23
Rank movement Down 630 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #34,308 | 625 | 0.23 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #35,203 | 640 | 0.22 | +15 bearers (+2.4%) | Down 895 places |
| 2020 | #35,833 | 674 | 0.23 | +34 bearers (+5.3%) | Down 630 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 Laatsch 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 | #35,203 | #35,833 | -1.8% |
| Count | 640 | 674 | 5.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.22 | 0.23 | 2.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Laatsch bearers went from 640 to 674 (+5.3% change). The surname moved down 630 positions in the national ranking, going from #35,203 to #35,833.
FAQ
Laatsch surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Laatsch?
Name Census estimates that about 773 living Americans carry the surname Laatsch. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 443,408 residents.
How common is Laatsch?
Laatsch ranks #35,833 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.23 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 674 people with the surname Laatsch. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (773), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.23 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.23 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 Laatsch.
Has Laatsch become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Laatsch went from 640 recorded bearers to 674. That is an increase of 34 (+5.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #35,203 to #35,833.
What does the Census say about the background of Laatsch?
Among Census respondents with the surname Laatsch, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.9%) and Two or More Races (1.6%). 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 Laatsch in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.3% (649 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Laatsch appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (96.3%), Hispanic (1.9%), Two or More Races (1.6%). 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 Laatsch (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 Laatsch mean?
A surname originating from German meaning "forest" or "wooded area". 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 Laatsch (0.23 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 Laatsch?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.