2000
#3,010
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 11,030
First available Census row
Per 100,000 4.09
Uncommon Last name
Lamar
French surname derived from the Old French la mare, meaning "the pool" or "the marsh."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 12,744 Americans carry the last name Lamar. That puts it at #3,171 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.72 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 26,895 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Lamar 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
13K
1 in 26,895
Census rank
#3,171
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
11K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 11,113 bearers of the surname Lamar in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.72 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3171st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Lamar, the largest self-reported group is White at 49.4%. The next largest groups are Black (37.4%) and Hispanic (7.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of 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.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lamar
Among Census respondents with the surname Lamar, the largest self-reported group is White at 49.4%. The next largest groups are Black (37.4%) and Hispanic (7.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Lamar 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 Lamar surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White49.4% · 5,490
- Black or African American37.4% · 4,154
- Hispanic or Latino7.3% · 813
- Two or more races4.7% · 523
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 82
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 51
Timeline
Historical Census data for Lamar
Lamar 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
#3,057
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 11,733
+703 bearers (+6.4%)
Per 100,000 3.98
Rank movement Down 47 places
2020
#3,171
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 11,113
-620 bearers (-5.3%)
Per 100,000 3.72
Rank movement Down 114 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,010 | 11,030 | 4.09 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,057 | 11,733 | 3.98 | +703 bearers (+6.4%) | Down 47 places |
| 2020 | #3,171 | 11,113 | 3.72 | -620 bearers (-5.3%) | Down 114 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 Lamar 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 | #3,057 | #3,171 | -3.7% |
| Count | 11,733 | 11,113 | -5.3% |
| Per 100K | 3.98 | 3.72 | -6.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Lamar bearers went from 11,733 to 11,113 (-5.3% change). The surname moved down 114 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,057 to #3,171.
FAQ
Lamar surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Lamar?
Name Census estimates that about 12,744 living Americans carry the surname Lamar. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 26,895 residents.
How common is Lamar?
Lamar ranks #3,171 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.72 per 100,000 residents, which is about 4 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 11,113 people with the surname Lamar. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (12,744), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.72 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.72 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 4 of them to have the surname Lamar.
Has Lamar become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Lamar went from 11,733 recorded bearers to 11,113. That is a decrease of 620 (-5.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,057 to #3,171.
What does the Census say about the background of Lamar?
Among Census respondents with the surname Lamar, the largest self-reported group is White at 49.4%. The next largest groups are Black (37.4%) and Hispanic (7.3%). 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 Lamar in the 2020 Census, accounting for 49.4% (5,490 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Lamar appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (49.4%), Black (37.4%), Hispanic (7.3%). 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 Lamar (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 Lamar mean?
French surname derived from the Old French la mare, meaning "the pool" or "the marsh." 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 Lamar (3.72 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 are called Lamar?
If you just want to know how common the surname Lamar is, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.