2000
#11,774
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,436
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.90
Rare Last name
Laduke
Derived from the French place name "Le Duc," meaning "the duke," likely referring to a person from that location.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,871 Americans carry the last name Laduke. That puts it at #11,938 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.84 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 119,385 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Laduke 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
2.9K
1 in 119,385
Census rank
#11,938
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,504 bearers of the surname Laduke in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.84 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11938th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Laduke, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.5%) and Hispanic (2.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Laduke
The surname LaDuke is of French origin, deriving from the Old French words "la" meaning "the" and "duce" meaning "leader" or "duke". The name can be traced back to the 12th century in the Normandy region of northern France.
This name was likely originally used to refer to someone who held a position of authority or leadership, perhaps a local lord or nobleman. It may have also been used ironically to describe someone who exhibited a sense of self-importance or acted in a commanding manner.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the LaDuke name appears in the 1180 Pipe Rolls of King Henry II, which documented tax records and landholdings. An entry lists a "Robertus le Duce" who held lands in the village of Carentan.
In the 13th century, variations of the spelling started to emerge, such as "Leduc", "Leducc", and "Laduce". These variations likely arose due to regional dialects and the inconsistencies in record-keeping at the time.
The LaDuke name can be found in several medieval manuscripts and records from Normandy and the surrounding regions. One notable example is a 1321 charter from the Abbey of Fécamp, which mentions a "Johannes Laduce" as a witness.
As the name spread across France and into other parts of Europe, it continued to evolve in spelling and pronunciation. In the 16th century, the spelling "LaDuke" became more common, particularly among those who emigrated to the New World.
One of the earliest recorded LaDukes in America was Jean LaDuke, a French Huguenot who arrived in New York in the late 17th century. Another notable early bearer of the name was Pierre LaDuke, a French-Canadian fur trader and explorer who was active in the Great Lakes region in the 18th century.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals with the LaDuke surname, including:
1. Jacques LaDuke (1674-1743), a French-Canadian military officer and explorer who led expeditions into the American Midwest.
2. Marie LaDuke (1809-1891), a French-American philanthropist and social activist from New Orleans.
3. Winona LaDuke (born 1959), a Native American environmental activist, economist, and author known for her work on tribal land issues.
4. Robert LaDuke (born 1945), an American actor and writer best known for his roles in television series such as "The Rockford Files" and "Hill Street Blues".
5. James LaDuke (1915-2004), an American professional basketball player who played for several teams in the Basketball Association of America (precursor to the NBA) in the 1940s.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Laduke
Among Census respondents with the surname Laduke, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.5%) and Hispanic (2.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Laduke 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 Laduke surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.4% · 2,238
- Two or more races4.5% · 112
- Hispanic or Latino2.4% · 60
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.4% · 59
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 23
- Black or African American0.5% · 12
Timeline
Historical Census data for Laduke
Laduke 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
#12,231
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,544
+108 bearers (+4.4%)
Per 100,000 0.86
Rank movement Down 457 places
2020
#11,938
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,504
-40 bearers (-1.6%)
Per 100,000 0.84
Rank movement Up 293 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,774 | 2,436 | 0.90 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,231 | 2,544 | 0.86 | +108 bearers (+4.4%) | Down 457 places |
| 2020 | #11,938 | 2,504 | 0.84 | -40 bearers (-1.6%) | Up 293 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 Laduke 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 | #12,231 | #11,938 | 2.4% |
| Count | 2,544 | 2,504 | -1.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.86 | 0.84 | -2.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Laduke bearers went from 2,544 to 2,504 (-1.6% change). The surname moved up 293 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,231 to #11,938.
FAQ
Laduke surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Laduke?
Name Census estimates that about 2,871 living Americans carry the surname Laduke. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 119,385 residents.
How common is Laduke?
Laduke ranks #11,938 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.84 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 2,504 people with the surname Laduke. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,871), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.84 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.84 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 Laduke.
Has Laduke become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Laduke went from 2,544 recorded bearers to 2,504. That is a decrease of 40 (-1.6%). In the national ranking it rose from #12,231 to #11,938.
What does the Census say about the background of Laduke?
Among Census respondents with the surname Laduke, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.5%) and Hispanic (2.4%). 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 Laduke in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.4% (2,238 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Laduke appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.4%), Two or More Races (4.5%), Hispanic (2.4%). 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 Laduke (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 Laduke mean?
Derived from the French place name "Le Duc," meaning "the duke," likely referring to a person from that location. 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 Laduke (0.84 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 share the surname Laduke?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.