2000
#5,752
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,514
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.04
Rare Last name
Latta
An English and Scottish topographic surname referring to a person who lived near a bog or marsh.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,160 Americans carry the last name Latta. That puts it at #6,114 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.80 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 55,642 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Latta 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 Latta with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
6.2K
1 in 55,642
Census rank
#6,114
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,372 bearers of the surname Latta in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.80 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6114th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Latta, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.4%. The next largest groups are Black (9.7%) and Two or More Races (5.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Latta
The surname Latta originated in Scotland during the medieval period. It is believed to have derived from the Middle English word 'lat', meaning a barn or outhouse for storing crops. The name was likely initially used as a descriptive term for someone who lived near or worked in such a building.
The earliest recorded instances of the Latta surname can be found in Scottish records from the 13th century. One of the earliest documented individuals with this name was John de Lath, who was mentioned in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland in 1290.
In the 14th century, the name appeared in various spellings, including Lath, Lathe, and Laithe, reflecting the regional variations in pronunciation and spelling of the time. One notable bearer of the name during this period was William Lath, a landowner in Berwickshire, who was mentioned in the Ragman Rolls of 1296.
The Latta surname is also associated with several place names in Scotland, such as Lathalmond in Fife and Lathockar in Lanarkshire. These place names may have influenced the spelling and pronunciation of the surname in certain regions.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the Latta surname. One of the earliest was John Latta, a Scottish merchant and landowner who lived in the 16th century (c. 1540-1610). Another prominent figure was James Latta, a Scottish minister and author born in 1672, who wrote influential works on theology.
In the 18th century, Samuel Latta (1722-1801) was a Presbyterian minister and educator who founded Latta Plantation in North Carolina. His grandson, James Latta (1779-1858), was a prominent lawyer and judge in South Carolina.
Another notable bearer of the Latta name was Raphael Semmes Latta (1838-1909), a Confederate officer during the American Civil War who later became a lawyer and judge in Mississippi.
The Latta surname has also been associated with various industries and professions over the centuries, including agriculture, trade, and law. While the name originated in Scotland, it has since spread to other parts of the world through migration and settlement.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Latta
Among Census respondents with the surname Latta, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.4%. The next largest groups are Black (9.7%) and Two or More Races (5.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Latta 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 Latta surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White80.4% · 4,320
- Black or African American9.7% · 520
- Two or more races5.1% · 275
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 173
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 44
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 40
Timeline
Historical Census data for Latta
Latta 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
#5,642
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,155
+641 bearers (+11.6%)
Per 100,000 2.09
Rank movement Up 110 places
2020
#6,114
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,372
-783 bearers (-12.7%)
Per 100,000 1.80
Rank movement Down 472 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,752 | 5,514 | 2.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,642 | 6,155 | 2.09 | +641 bearers (+11.6%) | Up 110 places |
| 2020 | #6,114 | 5,372 | 1.80 | -783 bearers (-12.7%) | Down 472 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 Latta 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 | #5,642 | #6,114 | -8.4% |
| Count | 6,155 | 5,372 | -12.7% |
| Per 100K | 2.09 | 1.80 | -14.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Latta bearers went from 6,155 to 5,372 (-12.7% change). The surname moved down 472 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,642 to #6,114.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Latta
FAQ
Latta surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Latta?
Name Census estimates that about 6,160 living Americans carry the surname Latta. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 55,642 residents.
How common is Latta?
Latta ranks #6,114 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.80 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,372 people with the surname Latta. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,160), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.8 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.80 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Latta.
Has Latta become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Latta went from 6,155 recorded bearers to 5,372. That is a decrease of 783 (-12.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,642 to #6,114.
What does the Census say about the background of Latta?
Among Census respondents with the surname Latta, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.4%. The next largest groups are Black (9.7%) and Two or More Races (5.1%). 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 Latta in the 2020 Census, accounting for 80.4% (4,320 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Latta appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (80.4%), Black (9.7%), Two or More Races (5.1%). 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 Latta (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 Latta mean?
An English and Scottish topographic surname referring to a person who lived near a bog or 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 Latta (1.80 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 Latta?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.