2000
#124,872
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 127
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Laumb
A surname derived from the personal name Lambert.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 136 Americans carry the last name Laumb. That puts it at #142,788 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,520,252 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Laumb 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
136
1 in 2,520,252
Census rank
#142,788
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
119
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 119 bearers of the surname Laumb in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 142788th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Laumb, the largest self-reported group is White at 98.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (0.8%) and Two or More Races (0.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Laumb
The surname Laumb has its origins in Germany, dating back to the 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the German word "Lamm," which means "lamb." This suggests that the name may have originally been an occupational surname or a descriptive nickname for someone who worked with sheep or had a gentle demeanor.
The earliest recorded instances of the name Laumb can be found in various historical documents and records from the southern regions of Germany. It appears in church registers and municipal records from towns and villages in areas such as Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg.
One notable historical reference to the Laumb name is in the "Bürgermeisterbuch" (Mayor's Book) of the town of Nürnberg, where a certain Hans Laumb is mentioned as a prominent citizen in the year 1587. This document provides valuable insight into the presence of the Laumb family in that region during the late 16th century.
The Laumb surname has also been found in various forms and spellings throughout history, such as Lamb, Lambe, and Lambh. These variations can often be attributed to regional dialects and the inconsistencies in record-keeping during those times.
Among the notable individuals who bore the Laumb surname, one can mention:
1. Johann Laumb (1592 - 1662), a German theologian and author from Nürnberg, who wrote several influential works on Protestant theology.
2. Katharina Laumb (1634 - 1704), a renowned German midwife from Augsburg, who played a significant role in advancing the practice of midwifery in her region.
3. Friedrich Laumb (1787 - 1845), a German painter and engraver from Munich, known for his intricate landscape paintings and etchings.
4. Elise Laumb (1812 - 1892), a German novelist and poet from Stuttgart, who gained recognition for her romantic novels and poetry collections.
5. Karl Laumb (1870 - 1937), a German architect from Berlin, responsible for designing several notable buildings and landmarks in the city during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
These examples illustrate the presence of the Laumb surname across various professions and regions of Germany, spanning several centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Laumb
Among Census respondents with the surname Laumb, the largest self-reported group is White at 98.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (0.8%) and Two or More Races (0.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Laumb 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 Laumb surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White98.3% · 117
- Hispanic or Latino0.8% · 1
- Two or more races0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Laumb
Laumb 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
#130,610
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 130
+3 bearers (+2.4%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 5,738 places
2020
#142,788
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 119
-11 bearers (-8.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 12,178 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #124,872 | 127 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #130,610 | 130 | 0.04 | +3 bearers (+2.4%) | Down 5,738 places |
| 2020 | #142,788 | 119 | 0.04 | -11 bearers (-8.5%) | Down 12,178 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 Laumb 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 | #130,610 | #142,788 | -9.3% |
| Count | 130 | 119 | -8.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -0.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Laumb bearers went from 130 to 119 (-8.5% change). The surname moved down 12,178 positions in the national ranking, going from #130,610 to #142,788.
FAQ
Laumb surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Laumb?
Name Census estimates that about 136 living Americans carry the surname Laumb. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,520,252 residents.
How common is Laumb?
Laumb ranks #142,788 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 119 people with the surname Laumb. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (136), 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 Laumb.
Has Laumb become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Laumb went from 130 recorded bearers to 119. That is a decrease of 11 (-8.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #130,610 to #142,788.
What does the Census say about the background of Laumb?
Among Census respondents with the surname Laumb, the largest self-reported group is White at 98.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (0.8%) and Two or More Races (0.8%). 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 Laumb in the 2020 Census, accounting for 98.3% (117 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Laumb appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (98.3%), Hispanic (0.8%), Two or More Races (0.8%). 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 Laumb (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 Laumb mean?
A surname derived from the personal name Lambert. 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 Laumb (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 common is the surname Laumb?
You can see how many people are called Laumb on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.