2000
#123,314
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 129
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Labeff
A surname of potentially French origin, possibly derived from the word "buffet" or "labeff" meaning a counter or sideboard.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 136 Americans carry the last name Labeff. That puts it at #142,788 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,520,252 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Labeff 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
136
1 in 2,520,252
Census rank
#142,788
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
119
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 119 bearers of the surname Labeff in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 142788th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Labeff, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (11.8%) and Hispanic (0.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Labeff
The surname LABEFF originated in France during the late 13th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old French words "la" meaning "the" and "beff" which was a term used to describe a person with a large or protruding lower lip. Initially, the name was likely used as a descriptive nickname before eventually becoming a hereditary surname.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the LABEFF surname can be found in the Armorial général, a registry of French nobility compiled in the late 17th century. It mentions a Jehan LABEFF, a minor nobleman from the village of Neuvy-en-Beauce in the Orléanais region.
In the 15th century, the LABEFF name appeared in several parish records from the Champagne region of northeastern France. Notably, a Pierre LABEFF was born in the village of Sézanne in 1472. He later served as a soldier in the army of King Charles VIII during the Italian War of 1494-1498.
During the 16th century, the LABEFF surname spread to other parts of France, including Normandy and Brittany. In 1567, a Jean LABEFF was recorded as a merchant in the city of Rouen. Around the same time, a family of LABEFFs was documented in the town of Quimper, where they owned a successful bakery business.
One of the most notable individuals with the LABEFF surname was Jacques LABEFF, a French explorer and cartographer born in 1628 in Dieppe. He accompanied several expeditions to the West Indies and North America, and his detailed maps of the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico coastlines were highly regarded at the time.
In the 18th century, the LABEFF name gained prominence in the world of literature. Marie-Thérèse LABEFF, born in 1745 in Paris, was a celebrated poet and playwright whose works were performed at the Comédie-Française. Her contemporary, Antoine LABEFF (1752-1819), was a renowned philosopher and author who wrote extensively on the principles of Enlightenment thought.
While the LABEFF surname has its roots in France, it eventually spread to other parts of Europe and the Americas through migration and intermarriage. However, the name remains relatively rare, with most contemporary bearers tracing their ancestry back to the original French lineages.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Labeff
Among Census respondents with the surname Labeff, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (11.8%) and Hispanic (0.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Labeff 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 Labeff surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White86.6% · 103
- Two or more races11.8% · 14
- Hispanic or Latino0.8% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Labeff
Labeff 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
#129,047
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 132
+3 bearers (+2.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 5,733 places
2020
#142,788
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 119
-13 bearers (-9.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 13,741 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #123,314 | 129 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #129,047 | 132 | 0.04 | +3 bearers (+2.3%) | Down 5,733 places |
| 2020 | #142,788 | 119 | 0.04 | -13 bearers (-9.8%) | Down 13,741 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 Labeff 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 | #129,047 | #142,788 | -10.6% |
| Count | 132 | 119 | -9.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -0.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Labeff bearers went from 132 to 119 (-9.8% change). The surname moved down 13,741 positions in the national ranking, going from #129,047 to #142,788.
FAQ
Labeff surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Labeff?
Name Census estimates that about 136 living Americans carry the surname Labeff. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,520,252 residents.
How common is Labeff?
Labeff ranks #142,788 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 119 people with the surname Labeff. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (136), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Labeff.
Has Labeff become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Labeff went from 132 recorded bearers to 119. That is a decrease of 13 (-9.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #129,047 to #142,788.
What does the Census say about the background of Labeff?
Among Census respondents with the surname Labeff, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (11.8%) and Hispanic (0.8%). 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 Labeff in the 2020 Census, accounting for 86.6% (103 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Labeff appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (86.6%), Two or More Races (11.8%), Hispanic (0.8%). 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 Labeff (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 Labeff mean?
A surname of potentially French origin, possibly derived from the word "buffet" or "labeff" meaning a counter or sideboard. 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 Labeff (0.04 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 Labeff?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.