Find out how popular the last name Lafayette is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Lafayette.

Lafayette, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Lafayette surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Lafayette in America

Lafayette is the 12035th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Lafayette surname appeared 2,593 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Lafayette.

We can also compare 2010 data for Lafayette to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Lafayette

The surname Lafayette is of French origin, derived from the Old French words "la" meaning "the" and "fayete" meaning "young beech tree". It is believed to have originated as a topographical name, referring to a person who lived near a beech tree or in an area with many beech trees.

The earliest recorded use of the surname Lafayette dates back to the 13th century in the region of Auvergne, France. It was initially spelled as "Lafayet" or "Lafayete". In the 14th century, the name was also found in various records from the Île-de-France region, where it was sometimes spelled as "Lafayete" or "Lafayete".

One of the earliest known bearers of the surname Lafayette was Gilbert Motier de Lafayette (1380-1460), a French nobleman from the village of Chavaniac in Auvergne. He served as a military commander during the Hundred Years' War against England.

The name gained significant historical prominence with Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette (1757-1834), a French aristocrat and military officer who played a pivotal role in the American Revolutionary War. He served as a major-general in the Continental Army and was a close friend of George Washington.

Another notable figure with the surname Lafayette was Marie-Victor-Nicolas de Fay, Marquis de Lafayette (1770-1815), a French politician and military leader during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. He was the grandson of the famous Marquis de Lafayette who fought in the American Revolution.

In England, the surname Lafayette is also found, although less commonly. One notable bearer was Samuel Lafayette (1696-1765), an English playwright and author who wrote several comedies and tragedies in the early 18th century.

The name Lafayette has also been associated with various place names, such as Lafayette County in Missouri and Lafayette, Indiana, both of which were named after the Marquis de Lafayette in recognition of his contributions to the American Revolution.

Other historical figures with the surname Lafayette include René-Armand Séguier de Lafayette (1757-1796), a French politician and diplomat during the French Revolution, and Marie-Adrienne de Lafayette (1759-1807), the wife of the Marquis de Lafayette and a prominent figure in her own right during the French Revolution.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Lafayette

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Lafayette.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Lafayette was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Lafayette has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Lafayette was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Lafayette, please contact us.

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