2000
#5,000
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,435
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.39
Rare Last name
Lavin
Anglicized form of the Irish surname Ó Laimhín, meaning "descendant of Laimhín," derived from a diminutive of "lamh" meaning "hand."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 7,168 Americans carry the last name Lavin. That puts it at #5,387 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.09 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 47,817 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Lavin 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 Lavin with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
7.2K
1 in 47,817
Census rank
#5,387
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
6.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 6,251 bearers of the surname Lavin in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.09 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5387th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Lavin, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (12.1%) and Two or More Races (2.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Lavin
The surname Lavin is believed to have originated in Ireland. It is a variant spelling of the Irish Gaelic name Ó Leamhain, which means "descendant of Leamhain." Leamhain was a personal name derived from the old Irish word "leamh," meaning "elm tree."
The earliest recorded instances of the name Lavin can be traced back to the 12th century in County Cavan, Ireland. The name appears in the Annals of the Four Masters, a famous medieval Irish chronicle, which mentions a chieftain named Muircheartach Ó Leamhain who lived in the 12th century.
In the 16th century, the name Lavin was also found in County Monaghan, where it was anglicized from the Irish Ó Leamhain. Records from this time period show various spellings, including Levyn, Levin, and Lavyn.
One notable figure with the surname Lavin was Patrick Lavin, an Irish Franciscan friar who lived in the 17th century. He was a renowned scholar and author, known for his work on Irish hagiography (the study of saints' lives).
Another prominent individual was Jeremiah Lavin, an Irish-American businessman and philanthropist born in 1833. He made his fortune in the tobacco industry and was a significant benefactor to various educational and charitable institutions in the United States.
In the 19th century, the name Lavin gained wider recognition through the work of James Lavin, an Irish poet and playwright born in 1828. He was celebrated for his plays and poems that captured the spirit of Irish life and culture.
John Lavin, born in 1854, was a notable Irish-American politician who served as the Mayor of New Haven, Connecticut, from 1901 to 1905. He played a crucial role in the city's development during his tenure.
Mary Lavin, born in 1912, was an acclaimed Irish writer and short story author. Her works, which often explored the lives of ordinary Irish people, earned her numerous literary awards and recognition.
The surname Lavin has a rich history rooted in Ireland, with connections to various notable figures across different fields, from literature and religion to business and politics.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lavin
Among Census respondents with the surname Lavin, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (12.1%) and Two or More Races (2.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Lavin 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 Lavin surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White83.5% · 5,219
- Hispanic or Latino12.1% · 759
- Two or more races2.4% · 147
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.3% · 80
- Black or African American0.6% · 39
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 7
Timeline
Historical Census data for Lavin
Lavin 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
#5,224
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,679
+244 bearers (+3.8%)
Per 100,000 2.26
Rank movement Down 224 places
2020
#5,387
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,251
-428 bearers (-6.4%)
Per 100,000 2.09
Rank movement Down 163 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,000 | 6,435 | 2.39 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,224 | 6,679 | 2.26 | +244 bearers (+3.8%) | Down 224 places |
| 2020 | #5,387 | 6,251 | 2.09 | -428 bearers (-6.4%) | Down 163 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 Lavin 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 | #5,224 | #5,387 | -3.1% |
| Count | 6,679 | 6,251 | -6.4% |
| Per 100K | 2.26 | 2.09 | -7.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Lavin bearers went from 6,679 to 6,251 (-6.4% change). The surname moved down 163 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,224 to #5,387.
FAQ
Lavin surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Lavin?
Name Census estimates that about 7,168 living Americans carry the surname Lavin. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 47,817 residents.
How common is Lavin?
Lavin ranks #5,387 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.09 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 6,251 people with the surname Lavin. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (7,168), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.09 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.09 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 Lavin.
Has Lavin become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Lavin went from 6,679 recorded bearers to 6,251. That is a decrease of 428 (-6.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,224 to #5,387.
What does the Census say about the background of Lavin?
Among Census respondents with the surname Lavin, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (12.1%) and Two or More Races (2.4%). 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 Lavin in the 2020 Census, accounting for 83.5% (5,219 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Lavin appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (83.5%), Hispanic (12.1%), Two or More Races (2.4%). 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 Lavin (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 Lavin mean?
Anglicized form of the Irish surname Ó Laimhín, meaning "descendant of Laimhín," derived from a diminutive of "lamh" meaning "hand." 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 Lavin (2.09 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 surname Lavin?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.