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

Lapan, 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 Lapan surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Lapan in America

Lapan is the 17202nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Lapan surname appeared 1,646 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Lapan.

We can also compare 2010 data for Lapan 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 Lapan

The surname Lapan has its origins in Poland, with the earliest records dating back to the 16th century. It is believed to be derived from the Polish word "lapa," which means "paw" or "claw." This suggests that the name may have been originally given as a nickname to someone with large hands or feet, or perhaps someone who walked with a distinctive gait.

One of the earliest known references to the name can be found in a document from the town of Krakow in 1572, where a man named Jan Lapan is mentioned as a merchant. The name also appears in various church records and land registries throughout the 17th and 18th centuries in regions such as Silesia and Greater Poland.

In the 19th century, the Lapan surname began to spread beyond Poland's borders as families emigrated to neighboring countries. There are records of Lapans in the Prussian province of Posen (now Poznan, Poland) and in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, particularly in the regions of Galicia and Bukovina (now parts of Ukraine).

One notable figure with the Lapan surname was Józef Lapan (1819-1892), a Polish writer and journalist who played a role in the January Uprising against Russian rule in the 1860s. He spent several years in exile in France before returning to Poland.

Another Lapan of note was Franciszek Lapan (1866-1938), a Polish architect who designed numerous buildings in the city of Krakow, including the Juliusz Słowacki Theatre and the Church of St. Michael the Archangel.

In the 20th century, as Polish communities established themselves in countries like the United States, Canada, and Australia, the Lapan surname spread further. One prominent figure was Henryk Lapan (1904-1982), a Polish-American engineer and inventor who worked for NASA and was involved in the development of the Saturn V rocket.

Other individuals with the Lapan surname include Janusz Lapan (1923-1999), a Polish writer and translator, and Paweł Lapan (born 1963), a Polish actor and director who has appeared in numerous films and television shows.

While the name Lapan is still most prevalent in Poland and among Polish communities abroad, it has also been adopted by families in other parts of Europe and beyond, reflecting the spread of Polish culture and migration over the centuries.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Lapan

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

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

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

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