2010
#147,253
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Lacking
An English surname suggesting an insufficiency or scarcity.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 110 Americans carry the last name Lacking. That puts it at #156,540 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 3,115,949 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Lacking 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
110
1 in 3,115,949
Census rank
#156,540
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
96
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 96 bearers of the surname Lacking in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 156540th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Lacking, the largest self-reported group is Black at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (8.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Lacking
The surname LACKING is believed to have originated in England, likely during the medieval period. It may have derived from the Old English word "laccian," meaning "to be lacking" or "to be deficient." This suggests that the name could have initially been given as a descriptive nickname to someone who was perceived as lacking in some way, perhaps lacking possessions, skills, or other qualities.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name LACKING can be found in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273, which were records of landholders in England. The entry lists a "Robertus Lackynge" from Oxfordshire. This suggests that the surname was already in use by the 13th century and may have originated even earlier.
In the 14th century, the name LACKING appeared in various legal and administrative records, such as the Subsidy Rolls of 1327, which mentioned a "Johannes Lakyng" from Cambridgeshire. The spelling variations, such as "Lakyng" and "Lackynge," were common during this period due to the lack of standardized spelling conventions.
A notable early bearer of the LACKING surname was William Lacking, a merchant and landowner who lived in Somerset, England, in the late 15th century. Records from 1483 show that he was involved in several land transactions and held properties in the village of Somerton.
During the 16th century, the LACKING surname was found in various parts of England, including Yorkshire, Essex, and Gloucestershire. One individual of note was Thomas Lacking, a yeoman farmer from Yorkshire who was born around 1520. He is mentioned in several local records and is believed to have been a substantial landowner in his community.
In the 17th century, the LACKING surname continued to spread across England, with some bearers migrating to other parts of the British Isles and even to the American colonies. One notable figure was John Lacking, a Puritan settler who arrived in Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1635. He later became a prominent landowner and magistrate in the town of Dedham.
It's important to note that while these examples highlight some historical instances of the LACKING surname, the name's origins and distribution may have been more widespread, as record-keeping practices were often inconsistent or incomplete, particularly in earlier periods.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lacking
Among Census respondents with the surname Lacking, the largest self-reported group is Black at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (8.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Lacking 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 Lacking surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American91.7% · 88
- Two or more races8.3% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Lacking
Lacking 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
#156,540
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 96
-16 bearers (-14.3%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 9,287 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #147,253 | 112 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #156,540 | 96 | 0.03 | -16 bearers (-14.3%) | Down 9,287 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 Lacking 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 | #147,253 | #156,540 | -6.3% |
| Count | 112 | 96 | -14.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -19.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Lacking bearers went from 112 to 96 (-14.3% change). The surname moved down 9,287 positions in the national ranking, going from #147,253 to #156,540.
FAQ
Lacking surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Lacking?
Name Census estimates that about 110 living Americans carry the surname Lacking. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 3,115,949 residents.
How common is Lacking?
Lacking ranks #156,540 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 96 people with the surname Lacking. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (110), 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 Lacking.
Has Lacking become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Lacking went from 112 recorded bearers to 96. That is a decrease of 16 (-14.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #147,253 to #156,540.
What does the Census say about the background of Lacking?
Among Census respondents with the surname Lacking, the largest self-reported group is Black at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (8.3%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Lacking in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.7% (88 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Lacking appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (91.7%), Two or More Races (8.3%). 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 Lacking (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 Lacking mean?
An English surname suggesting an insufficiency or scarcity. 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 Lacking (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 common is the surname Lacking?
Want to know how many people are called Lacking? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.