2000
#12,037
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,380
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.88
Rare Last name
Lavalle
A French topographic surname referring to someone who lived in or near a valley.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,720 Americans carry the last name Lavalle. That puts it at #12,479 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.79 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 126,013 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Lavalle 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
2.7K
1 in 126,013
Census rank
#12,479
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,372 bearers of the surname Lavalle in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.79 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12479th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Lavalle, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (19.1%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Lavalle
The surname LAVALLE originated in France during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Old French words "la" meaning "the" and "valle" meaning "valley," suggesting the name may have referred to someone who lived in a particular valley or was from a specific place called Valle.
The earliest known recorded instance of the LAVALLE surname dates back to the 13th century, where it appeared in various medieval documents and records from the regions of Normandy and Picardy in northern France. Some variations in spelling included LaValle, Lavale, and de la Valle.
One of the earliest notable individuals with this surname was Jean de la Valle, a French nobleman and knight who fought in the Hundred Years' War against the English in the 14th century. He was born around 1320 and died in battle in 1356.
In the 16th century, there was a prominent French family named LAVALLE who owned a large estate in the village of Vaugirard, near Paris. The most famous member of this family was Claude de LAVALLE, a renowned architect and engineer who worked on several significant construction projects in Paris during the reign of King Henry IV in the late 1500s and early 1600s.
Another historical figure with the LAVALLE surname was Pierre-François LAVALLE, a French military officer and general who served under Napoleon Bonaparte during the Napoleonic Wars in the early 19th century. He was born in 1769 and died in 1830.
In the world of literature, the name LAVALLE is associated with the French poet and playwright Jean-François LAVALLE, who lived from 1716 to 1782. He was known for his satirical works and plays that critiqued societal issues of his time.
During the 19th century, there was a notable American family with the LAVALLE surname, originating from French immigrants who settled in Louisiana. One member of this family, Alexandre LAVALLE, was a prominent lawyer and politician who served as a judge and state senator in Louisiana in the mid-1800s.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lavalle
Among Census respondents with the surname Lavalle, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (19.1%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Lavalle 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 Lavalle surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White75.6% · 1,794
- Hispanic or Latino19.1% · 454
- Two or more races2.8% · 67
- Black or African American1.2% · 28
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 15
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 14
Timeline
Historical Census data for Lavalle
Lavalle 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
#11,946
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,617
+237 bearers (+10.0%)
Per 100,000 0.89
Rank movement Up 91 places
2020
#12,479
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,372
-245 bearers (-9.4%)
Per 100,000 0.79
Rank movement Down 533 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,037 | 2,380 | 0.88 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,946 | 2,617 | 0.89 | +237 bearers (+10.0%) | Up 91 places |
| 2020 | #12,479 | 2,372 | 0.79 | -245 bearers (-9.4%) | Down 533 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 Lavalle 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 | #11,946 | #12,479 | -4.5% |
| Count | 2,617 | 2,372 | -9.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.89 | 0.79 | -10.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Lavalle bearers went from 2,617 to 2,372 (-9.4% change). The surname moved down 533 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,946 to #12,479.
FAQ
Lavalle surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Lavalle?
Name Census estimates that about 2,720 living Americans carry the surname Lavalle. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 126,013 residents.
How common is Lavalle?
Lavalle ranks #12,479 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.79 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,372 people with the surname Lavalle. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,720), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.79 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.79 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Lavalle.
Has Lavalle become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Lavalle went from 2,617 recorded bearers to 2,372. That is a decrease of 245 (-9.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #11,946 to #12,479.
What does the Census say about the background of Lavalle?
Among Census respondents with the surname Lavalle, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (19.1%) 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 Lavalle in the 2020 Census, accounting for 75.6% (1,794 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Lavalle appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (75.6%), Hispanic (19.1%), 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 Lavalle (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 Lavalle mean?
A French topographic surname referring to someone who lived in or near a valley. 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 Lavalle (0.79 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 Lavalle?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the last name Lavalle at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.