2000
#8,465
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,585
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.33
Rare Last name
Lacour
A French topographical surname referring to someone who lived near a courtyard or royal court.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,227 Americans carry the last name Lacour. That puts it at #8,566 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.23 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 81,087 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Lacour 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
4.2K
1 in 81,087
Census rank
#8,566
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,686 bearers of the surname Lacour in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.23 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8566th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Lacour, the largest self-reported group is White at 50.9%. The next largest groups are Black (33.5%) and Hispanic (7.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Lacour
The surname LACOUR has its origins in France, dating back to the Middle Ages. It is a locational name derived from the French phrase "la cour," meaning "the court" or "the manor." This suggests that the earliest bearers of this name may have resided near a courthouse or a manor house.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the LACOUR surname can be found in the Domesday Book, a medieval census commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. The name is listed as "de la Cour," reflecting its French roots and the practice of adding the preposition "de" (meaning "of" or "from") to locational surnames during that period.
In the 13th century, the surname appeared in various historical records as "de la Cour," "de Lacour," and "Lacour." These variations in spelling were common before surnames became standardized. The LACOUR spelling likely emerged as a simplified version of the original form.
Notable individuals bearing the LACOUR surname include:
1. Étienne LACOUR (1530-1599), a French jurist and political philosopher known for his works on natural law and civil rights.
2. Marie-Anne LACOUR (1768-1845), a French painter renowned for her portraiture and historical scenes.
3. Jacques LACOUR (1805-1871), a French architect who designed several notable buildings in Paris, including the Théâtre du Châtelet.
4. Émile LACOUR (1872-1952), a French physicist and pioneer in the field of wireless telegraphy, known for his contributions to the development of radio communication.
5. Françoise LACOUR (1919-2004), a French actress and author who gained recognition for her roles in several acclaimed films during the mid-20th century.
The LACOUR surname has also been associated with various place names in France, such as Lacour-d'Arcenay in the Côte-d'Or region and Lacour in the Tarn-et-Garonne department. These place names likely derived from the original meaning of the surname, referring to settlements or areas surrounding manors or courthouses.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lacour
Among Census respondents with the surname Lacour, the largest self-reported group is White at 50.9%. The next largest groups are Black (33.5%) and Hispanic (7.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Lacour 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 Lacour surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White50.9% · 1,878
- Black or African American33.5% · 1,235
- Hispanic or Latino7.7% · 284
- Two or more races6.1% · 224
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 38
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 27
Timeline
Historical Census data for Lacour
Lacour 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
#8,608
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,822
+237 bearers (+6.6%)
Per 100,000 1.30
Rank movement Down 143 places
2020
#8,566
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,686
-136 bearers (-3.6%)
Per 100,000 1.23
Rank movement Up 42 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,465 | 3,585 | 1.33 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,608 | 3,822 | 1.30 | +237 bearers (+6.6%) | Down 143 places |
| 2020 | #8,566 | 3,686 | 1.23 | -136 bearers (-3.6%) | Up 42 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 Lacour 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 | #8,608 | #8,566 | 0.5% |
| Count | 3,822 | 3,686 | -3.6% |
| Per 100K | 1.30 | 1.23 | -5.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Lacour bearers went from 3,822 to 3,686 (-3.6% change). The surname moved up 42 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,608 to #8,566.
FAQ
Lacour surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Lacour?
Name Census estimates that about 4,227 living Americans carry the surname Lacour. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 81,087 residents.
How common is Lacour?
Lacour ranks #8,566 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.23 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 3,686 people with the surname Lacour. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,227), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.23 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.23 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Lacour.
Has Lacour become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Lacour went from 3,822 recorded bearers to 3,686. That is a decrease of 136 (-3.6%). In the national ranking it rose from #8,608 to #8,566.
What does the Census say about the background of Lacour?
Among Census respondents with the surname Lacour, the largest self-reported group is White at 50.9%. The next largest groups are Black (33.5%) and Hispanic (7.7%). 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 Lacour in the 2020 Census, accounting for 50.9% (1,878 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Lacour appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (50.9%), Black (33.5%), Hispanic (7.7%). 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 Lacour (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 Lacour mean?
A French topographical surname referring to someone who lived near a courtyard or royal court. 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 Lacour (1.23 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 Lacour?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.