2000
#7,878
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,898
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.44
Rare Last name
Lafond
French topographic surname referring to someone living near a spring or well.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,608 Americans carry the last name Lafond. That puts it at #7,923 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.34 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 74,382 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Lafond 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
4.6K
1 in 74,382
Census rank
#7,923
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,018 bearers of the surname Lafond in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.34 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7923rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Lafond, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.8%. The next largest groups are Black (9.9%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Lafond
The surname LAFOND originated in France during the medieval period. It is derived from the Old French words "la" meaning "the" and "fond" meaning "bottom" or "low-lying area." This suggests that the name likely referred to someone who lived in a valley or near the bottom of a hill.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a survey of land ownership in England commissioned by William the Conqueror. The name is spelled as "Lafunde" in this document, indicating its French origins.
In the 13th century, there are records of a family called LAFOND living in the village of Charentilly, located in the Île-de-France region of northern France. This village was situated near the Bièvre River, which aligns with the name's meaning of a low-lying area.
A notable figure with this surname was Jean LAFOND, a French architect who lived from 1615 to 1675. He was known for his work on several churches and monuments in Paris, including the Church of Saint-Sulpice and the Val-de-Grâce monastery.
Another significant individual was François LAFOND, a French explorer and navigator who lived from 1775 to 1839. He led several expeditions to the Pacific Ocean and was responsible for mapping and charting many islands in the region.
In the 19th century, a French-Canadian family named LAFOND settled in the province of Quebec, Canada. One of their descendants, Joseph LAFOND, was a prominent politician who served as a member of the Canadian Parliament from 1867 to 1872.
During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, several LAFOND families emigrated from France to the United States, settling in various regions such as New England and the Midwest. One notable figure from this era was Albert LAFOND, an American artist who lived from 1891 to 1971 and was known for his landscape paintings.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lafond
Among Census respondents with the surname Lafond, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.8%. The next largest groups are Black (9.9%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Lafond 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 Lafond surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White80.8% · 3,246
- Black or African American9.9% · 399
- Two or more races4.4% · 175
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 146
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 37
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 15
Timeline
Historical Census data for Lafond
Lafond 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
#8,049
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,112
+214 bearers (+5.5%)
Per 100,000 1.39
Rank movement Down 171 places
2020
#7,923
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,018
-94 bearers (-2.3%)
Per 100,000 1.34
Rank movement Up 126 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,878 | 3,898 | 1.44 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,049 | 4,112 | 1.39 | +214 bearers (+5.5%) | Down 171 places |
| 2020 | #7,923 | 4,018 | 1.34 | -94 bearers (-2.3%) | Up 126 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 Lafond 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 | #8,049 | #7,923 | 1.6% |
| Count | 4,112 | 4,018 | -2.3% |
| Per 100K | 1.39 | 1.34 | -3.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Lafond bearers went from 4,112 to 4,018 (-2.3% change). The surname moved up 126 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,049 to #7,923.
FAQ
Lafond surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Lafond?
Name Census estimates that about 4,608 living Americans carry the surname Lafond. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 74,382 residents.
How common is Lafond?
Lafond ranks #7,923 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.34 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 4,018 people with the surname Lafond. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,608), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.34 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.34 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 Lafond.
Has Lafond become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Lafond went from 4,112 recorded bearers to 4,018. That is a decrease of 94 (-2.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #8,049 to #7,923.
What does the Census say about the background of Lafond?
Among Census respondents with the surname Lafond, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.8%. The next largest groups are Black (9.9%) and Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Lafond in the 2020 Census, accounting for 80.8% (3,246 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Lafond appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (80.8%), Black (9.9%), Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Lafond (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 Lafond mean?
French topographic surname referring to someone living near a spring or well. 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 Lafond (1.34 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 have the surname Lafond?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.