2000
#134,037
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 116
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Lappa
A variant surname of Finnish origin likely relating to a person from the place Lappi in Finland.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 125 Americans carry the last name Lappa. That puts it at #150,205 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,742,035 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Lappa 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
125
1 in 2,742,035
Census rank
#150,205
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
109
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 109 bearers of the surname Lappa in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 150205th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Lappa, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.3%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Lappa
The surname Lappa has its origins in Italy, dating back to the medieval period. It is derived from the Italian word "lappa," which means "burdock," a common plant found throughout Europe. The name is thought to have originated as a nickname or a descriptive name, possibly referring to an individual who lived near a patch of burdock plants or had some association with the plant.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Lappa can be found in the archives of the Republic of Venice, where a certain Niccolò Lappa is mentioned in a document dated 1327. This suggests that the name was already established in the Venetian region during the 14th century.
In the 15th century, the name appears in several historical records from the city of Florence. A notable figure from this period is Giovanni Lappa, a renowned painter and sculptor who lived from 1420 to 1495. His works can still be found in various churches and museums throughout Italy.
The surname Lappa also gained prominence in the region of Calabria, located in the southern part of Italy. In the 16th century, a family bearing this name owned vast estates and held significant influence in the area. One of the most famous members of this family was Girolamo Lappa, who was born in 1558 and served as a military commander during the Italian Wars of the late 16th century.
As the centuries passed, the Lappa name spread to other parts of Italy and even beyond its borders. In the 18th century, a notable figure was Antonio Lappa, a Neapolitan philosopher and mathematician who lived from 1723 to 1801. His contributions to the fields of calculus and geometry were widely recognized during his lifetime.
Another individual of note was Giuseppe Lappa, born in 1804 in the town of Palermo, Sicily. He was a prominent lawyer and politician who played a significant role in the Italian unification movement of the 19th century, advocating for the creation of a unified Italian state.
While the name Lappa is primarily associated with Italy, it has also been found in other parts of Europe, possibly due to migration and intermarriage over the centuries. However, the Italian roots of this surname remain firmly established, with its origins rooted in the rich cultural and linguistic heritage of the Italian peninsula.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lappa
Among Census respondents with the surname Lappa, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.3%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Lappa 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 Lappa surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White86.2% · 94
- Hispanic or Latino7.3% · 8
- Two or more races2.8% · 3
- Black or African American1.8% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Lappa
Lappa 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
#159,712
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 101
-15 bearers (-12.9%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 25,675 places
2020
#150,205
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 109
+8 bearers (+7.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 9,507 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #134,037 | 116 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #159,712 | 101 | 0.03 | -15 bearers (-12.9%) | Down 25,675 places |
| 2020 | #150,205 | 109 | 0.04 | +8 bearers (+7.9%) | Up 9,507 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 Lappa 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 | #159,712 | #150,205 | 6.0% |
| Count | 101 | 109 | 7.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.04 | 21.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Lappa bearers went from 101 to 109 (+7.9% change). The surname moved up 9,507 positions in the national ranking, going from #159,712 to #150,205.
FAQ
Lappa surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Lappa?
Name Census estimates that about 125 living Americans carry the surname Lappa. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,742,035 residents.
How common is Lappa?
Lappa ranks #150,205 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 109 people with the surname Lappa. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (125), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Lappa.
Has Lappa become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Lappa went from 101 recorded bearers to 109. That is an increase of 8 (+7.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #159,712 to #150,205.
What does the Census say about the background of Lappa?
Among Census respondents with the surname Lappa, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.3%) 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 Lappa in the 2020 Census, accounting for 86.2% (94 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Lappa appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (86.2%), Hispanic (7.3%), 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 Lappa (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 Lappa mean?
A variant surname of Finnish origin likely relating to a person from the place Lappi in Finland. 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 Lappa (0.04 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 Americans have the surname Lappa?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.