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

Lamar, 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 Lamar surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Lamar in America

Lamar is the 3057th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Lamar surname appeared 11,733 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 4 people would have the surname Lamar.

We can also compare 2010 data for Lamar 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 Lamar

The surname LAMAR is believed to have originated in France, likely during the Middle Ages. It may have derived from the French place name "La Mer," meaning "the sea," potentially referring to someone who lived near the ocean or worked in a maritime profession.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name LAMAR can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, a comprehensive survey of land ownership and tax assessment conducted in England following the Norman Conquest. The name is listed as "de la Mare," which could be a variation of the same origin.

During the 13th century, the name LAMAR appeared in various historical records and manuscripts across France and England. In 1265, a knight named Guy de la Mare is mentioned in the Hundred Rolls, a census-like record of landowners in England at the time.

As the name spread across Europe, it underwent various spelling variations, such as Lamare, LaMar, and LaMarr. One notable figure was Jacques de la Mer (1515-1587), a French Protestant theologian and reformer who played a role in the French Wars of Religion.

In the 17th century, the name LAMAR gained prominence in the New World as French settlers and Huguenot refugees brought it to North America. One of the earliest recorded instances in the colonies was Jean de la Mer (1635-1704), a French Huguenot who settled in New Rochelle, New York.

Another notable figure was Joseph-François Lamarque (1776-1837), a French military officer and political leader who served under Napoleon Bonaparte and later became a prominent figure in the July Revolution of 1830.

In the United States, the LAMAR surname has been associated with several prominent individuals, including Mirabeau B. Lamar (1798-1859), a politician and diplomat who served as the second President of the Republic of Texas, and Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar (1825-1893), a U.S. Senator and Supreme Court Justice.

Joseph Rucker Lamar (1857-1916) was an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, while William Bailey Lamar (1855-1944) was a influential banker and businessman in Georgia.

Overall, the surname LAMAR has a rich history spanning centuries and continents, rooted in its French origins and carried forward by notable individuals in various fields, from religion and politics to law and business.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Lamar

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

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 Lamar 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 Lamar 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 Lamar was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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