2000
#12,573
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,259
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.84
Rare Last name
Lamphere
A French occupational surname for someone who made or sold lanterns or lamps.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,298 Americans carry the last name Lamphere. That puts it at #14,358 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.67 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 149,153 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Lamphere 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
2.3K
1 in 149,153
Census rank
#14,358
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,004 bearers of the surname Lamphere in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.67 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14358th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Lamphere, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.0%) and Hispanic (3.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Lamphere
The surname LAMPHERE is believed to have originated in France, specifically in the region of Normandy, during the 11th or 12th century. It is thought to have derived from the Old French words "l'aumiere" or "l'aumiere," which referred to an elm tree or an elm grove. This suggests that the name may have initially designated someone who lived near or was associated with elm trees.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a comprehensive survey of land and property ownership in England commissioned by William the Conqueror. The name is listed as "de la Aumere," indicating its French origins.
During the Middle Ages, the name underwent various spelling variations, such as Laumiere, Laumiere, and Laumyer, reflecting the evolution of language and regional dialects. Some of these variations may have been influenced by place names or locations where the bearers of the name resided.
In the 14th century, a notable individual named John Lamphere was recorded as a landowner in the county of Oxfordshire, England. Another early example is Robert Lamphere, who was born in 1482 in the village of Lamphere, located in the county of Warwickshire.
One of the most prominent figures with this surname was Sir Thomas Lamphere (1550-1625), an English politician and Member of Parliament for the borough of Southwark during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.
In the 17th century, the LAMPHERE name appeared in colonial records of New England, suggesting that some individuals bearing this surname were among the early settlers in the American colonies. For instance, William Lamphere (1610-1688) was a Puritan settler who arrived in Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1635.
Another noteworthy individual was John Lamphere (1730-1812), a British army officer who served in the American Revolutionary War and later became a prominent landowner and community leader in Upper Canada (present-day Ontario, Canada).
Throughout history, the LAMPHERE surname has been found in various regions, including England, France, the United States, and Canada, reflecting the migration patterns and dispersal of families bearing this name over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lamphere
Among Census respondents with the surname Lamphere, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.0%) and Hispanic (3.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Lamphere 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 Lamphere surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.0% · 1,803
- Two or more races5.0% · 100
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 60
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 21
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 11
- Black or African American0.4% · 9
Timeline
Historical Census data for Lamphere
Lamphere 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
#13,203
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,315
+56 bearers (+2.5%)
Per 100,000 0.78
Rank movement Down 630 places
2020
#14,358
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,004
-311 bearers (-13.4%)
Per 100,000 0.67
Rank movement Down 1,155 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,573 | 2,259 | 0.84 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,203 | 2,315 | 0.78 | +56 bearers (+2.5%) | Down 630 places |
| 2020 | #14,358 | 2,004 | 0.67 | -311 bearers (-13.4%) | Down 1,155 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 Lamphere 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 | #13,203 | #14,358 | -8.7% |
| Count | 2,315 | 2,004 | -13.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.78 | 0.67 | -14.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Lamphere bearers went from 2,315 to 2,004 (-13.4% change). The surname moved down 1,155 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,203 to #14,358.
FAQ
Lamphere surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Lamphere?
Name Census estimates that about 2,298 living Americans carry the surname Lamphere. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 149,153 residents.
How common is Lamphere?
Lamphere ranks #14,358 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.67 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 2,004 people with the surname Lamphere. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,298), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.67 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.67 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 Lamphere.
Has Lamphere become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Lamphere went from 2,315 recorded bearers to 2,004. That is a decrease of 311 (-13.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #13,203 to #14,358.
What does the Census say about the background of Lamphere?
Among Census respondents with the surname Lamphere, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.0%) and Hispanic (3.0%). 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 Lamphere in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.0% (1,803 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Lamphere appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.0%), Two or More Races (5.0%), Hispanic (3.0%). 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 Lamphere (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 Lamphere mean?
A French occupational surname for someone who made or sold lanterns or lamps. 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 Lamphere (0.67 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 Lamphere?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.