2000
#12,566
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,261
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.84
Rare Last name
Langton
A locational surname referring to someone from any of the various places called Langton in England.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,538 Americans carry the last name Langton. That puts it at #13,221 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.74 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 135,049 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Langton 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Langton with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.5K
1 in 135,049
Census rank
#13,221
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,213 bearers of the surname Langton in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.74 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13221st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Langton, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.4%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Langton
The surname Langton has its origins in England, originating from the Old English words "lang" meaning long and "tun" meaning farm or settlement. It likely referred to someone who lived at or near a long farm or settlement.
The name can be traced back to the 11th century and the time of the Norman Conquest. It appears in the Domesday Book of 1086, a record of landholders in England commissioned by William the Conqueror. There are references to several places called Langton, including in Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, and Yorkshire.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname is Walter de Langton, who was born around 1155 and served as Bishop of Coventry and Lichfield from 1215 to 1228. Another notable historical figure was John Langton, a theologian and Chancellor of the University of Paris, who lived from around 1235 to 1315.
In the 14th century, there was a prominent family of Langtons who held lands in Leicestershire. William Langton was born around 1330 and served as a Member of Parliament for Leicestershire in 1362 and 1365. His son, Thomas Langton, was born around 1357 and was also a Member of Parliament for Leicestershire in 1395 and 1399.
The name Langton continued to be prominent in England throughout the medieval and early modern periods. In the 16th century, there was a John Langton who was a member of the Worshipful Company of Mercers in London and served as Master of the Company in 1578.
Another notable bearer of the name was Bennet Langton, born in 1736, who was a scholar, writer, and a close friend of Samuel Johnson. He was a member of Johnson's literary club and helped compile the famous writer's biography after his death.
While the surname Langton has its origins in England, it has since spread to other parts of the world through migration and has taken on various spellings and variations over time.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Langton
Among Census respondents with the surname Langton, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.4%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Langton 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 Langton surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.6% · 1,982
- Hispanic or Latino4.4% · 97
- Two or more races2.8% · 61
- Black or African American1.5% · 33
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.3% · 29
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 11
Timeline
Historical Census data for Langton
Langton 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
#12,817
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,406
+145 bearers (+6.4%)
Per 100,000 0.82
Rank movement Down 251 places
2020
#13,221
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,213
-193 bearers (-8.0%)
Per 100,000 0.74
Rank movement Down 404 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,566 | 2,261 | 0.84 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,817 | 2,406 | 0.82 | +145 bearers (+6.4%) | Down 251 places |
| 2020 | #13,221 | 2,213 | 0.74 | -193 bearers (-8.0%) | Down 404 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 Langton 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 | #12,817 | #13,221 | -3.2% |
| Count | 2,406 | 2,213 | -8.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.82 | 0.74 | -9.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Langton bearers went from 2,406 to 2,213 (-8.0% change). The surname moved down 404 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,817 to #13,221.
FAQ
Langton surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Langton?
Name Census estimates that about 2,538 living Americans carry the surname Langton. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 135,049 residents.
How common is Langton?
Langton ranks #13,221 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.74 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 2,213 people with the surname Langton. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,538), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.74 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.74 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 Langton.
Has Langton become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Langton went from 2,406 recorded bearers to 2,213. That is a decrease of 193 (-8.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #12,817 to #13,221.
What does the Census say about the background of Langton?
Among Census respondents with the surname Langton, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.4%) and Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Langton in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.6% (1,982 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Langton appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.6%), Hispanic (4.4%), Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Langton (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 Langton mean?
A locational surname referring to someone from any of the various places called Langton in England. 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 Langton (0.74 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 last name Langton?
See how common the surname Langton is on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.