2000
#12,009
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,387
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.88
Rare Last name
Lafayette
An English surname derived from a place name in Auvergne, France, meaning "the little enchanted fairy."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,684 Americans carry the last name Lafayette. That puts it at #12,598 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.78 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 127,703 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Lafayette 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
2.7K
1 in 127,703
Census rank
#12,598
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,341 bearers of the surname Lafayette in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.78 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12598th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Lafayette, the largest self-reported group is White at 54.0%. The next largest groups are Black (34.7%) and Hispanic (5.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of 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.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lafayette
Among Census respondents with the surname Lafayette, the largest self-reported group is White at 54.0%. The next largest groups are Black (34.7%) and Hispanic (5.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Lafayette 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 Lafayette surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White54.0% · 1,265
- Black or African American34.7% · 812
- Hispanic or Latino5.3% · 125
- Two or more races4.6% · 107
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.1% · 26
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 6
Timeline
Historical Census data for Lafayette
Lafayette 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
#12,035
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,593
+206 bearers (+8.6%)
Per 100,000 0.88
Rank movement Down 26 places
2020
#12,598
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,341
-252 bearers (-9.7%)
Per 100,000 0.78
Rank movement Down 563 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,009 | 2,387 | 0.88 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,035 | 2,593 | 0.88 | +206 bearers (+8.6%) | Down 26 places |
| 2020 | #12,598 | 2,341 | 0.78 | -252 bearers (-9.7%) | Down 563 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 Lafayette 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 | #12,035 | #12,598 | -4.7% |
| Count | 2,593 | 2,341 | -9.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.88 | 0.78 | -11.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Lafayette bearers went from 2,593 to 2,341 (-9.7% change). The surname moved down 563 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,035 to #12,598.
FAQ
Lafayette surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Lafayette?
Name Census estimates that about 2,684 living Americans carry the surname Lafayette. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 127,703 residents.
How common is Lafayette?
Lafayette ranks #12,598 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.78 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 2,341 people with the surname Lafayette. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,684), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.78 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.78 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 Lafayette.
Has Lafayette become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Lafayette went from 2,593 recorded bearers to 2,341. That is a decrease of 252 (-9.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #12,035 to #12,598.
What does the Census say about the background of Lafayette?
Among Census respondents with the surname Lafayette, the largest self-reported group is White at 54.0%. The next largest groups are Black (34.7%) and Hispanic (5.3%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Lafayette in the 2020 Census, accounting for 54.0% (1,265 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Lafayette appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (54.0%), Black (34.7%), Hispanic (5.3%). 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 Lafayette (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 Lafayette mean?
An English surname derived from a place name in Auvergne, France, meaning "the little enchanted fairy." 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 Lafayette (0.78 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 Lafayette?
You can see how many people are called Lafayette on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.