2010
#151,532
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 108
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Launstein
A surname possibly derived from a location name or topographical feature.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 135 Americans carry the last name Launstein. That puts it at #143,511 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,538,921 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Launstein 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
135
1 in 2,538,921
Census rank
#143,511
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
118
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 118 bearers of the surname Launstein in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 143511th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Launstein, the largest self-reported group is White at 100.0%.
Origin
Meaning and origin of Launstein
The surname Launstein has its origins in Germany, tracing back to the late medieval period around the 13th or 14th century. It is believed to have derived from the German words "laun" meaning "grove" or "thicket" and "stein" meaning "stone" or "rock." This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone who lived near a rocky thicket or wooded area.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Launstein can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Brandenburgensis, a collection of historical documents from the region of Brandenburg, dating back to the 14th century. There, the name appears as "Launsteyn" in reference to a landowner or nobleman.
In the 16th century, the name Launstein is mentioned in the Annals of Saxony, a historical chronicle documenting events in the region of Saxony. The entry refers to a certain Hans Launstein, a prominent merchant and trader in Leipzig during the 1540s.
The Launstein name also appears in the records of the Thirty Years' War (1618-1648), one of the most destructive conflicts in European history. A soldier named Friedrich Launstein is listed among the casualties of the Battle of Lützen in 1632, where the Swedish King Gustavus Adolphus was killed.
In the 18th century, a notable figure with the surname Launstein was Johann Christoph Launstein (1723-1792), a German theologian and author who published several works on religious philosophy and ethics.
Another prominent individual with this surname was Carl Gustav Launstein (1812-1884), a German botanist and explorer who conducted extensive research on the flora of South America and contributed significantly to the scientific understanding of plant species in that region.
Throughout its history, the surname Launstein has also been associated with various place names in Germany, such as Launstein in Lower Saxony and Launstein in Saxony-Anhalt. These locations may have been named after early settlers or landowners with the Launstein surname.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Launstein
Among Census respondents with the surname Launstein, the largest self-reported group is White at 100.0%.
The bar chart below shows how Launstein 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 Launstein surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White100.0% · 118
Timeline
Historical Census data for Launstein
Launstein appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#143,511
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 118
+10 bearers (+9.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 8,021 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #151,532 | 108 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #143,511 | 118 | 0.04 | +10 bearers (+9.3%) | Up 8,021 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 Launstein 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 | #151,532 | #143,511 | 5.3% |
| Count | 108 | 118 | 9.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -1.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Launstein bearers went from 108 to 118 (+9.3% change). The surname moved up 8,021 positions in the national ranking, going from #151,532 to #143,511.
FAQ
Launstein surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Launstein?
Name Census estimates that about 135 living Americans carry the surname Launstein. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,538,921 residents.
How common is Launstein?
Launstein ranks #143,511 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 118 people with the surname Launstein. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (135), 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 Launstein.
Has Launstein become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Launstein went from 108 recorded bearers to 118. That is an increase of 10 (+9.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #151,532 to #143,511.
What does the Census say about the background of Launstein?
Among Census respondents with the surname Launstein, the largest self-reported group is White at 100.0%. 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 Launstein in the 2020 Census, accounting for 100.0% (118 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Launstein appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (100.0%). 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 Launstein (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 Launstein mean?
A surname possibly derived from a location name or topographical feature. 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 Launstein (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 people have the last name Launstein?
You can see how many people have the surname Launstein on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.