2000
#3,689
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,833
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.27
Rare Last name
Lawless
An English surname denoting a person outside the law, or living free of society's legal constraints.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 9,894 Americans carry the last name Lawless. That puts it at #3,992 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.89 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 34,643 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Lawless 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 Lawless with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
9.9K
1 in 34,643
Census rank
#3,992
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
8.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 8,628 bearers of the surname Lawless in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.89 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3992nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Lawless, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.8%. The next largest groups are Black (4.1%) and Two or More Races (3.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Lawless
The surname Lawless originated in England during the late medieval period. It is believed to have derived from the Old English word 'laghles', meaning 'outlaw' or 'lawless one'. This suggests that the name may have been initially a descriptive nickname given to someone who lived outside the law or exhibited lawless behavior.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Lawless surname can be found in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire from 1327, where a William le Laweles is mentioned. This early spelling variation highlights the name's evolution over time.
In the 14th century, the Lawless family held lands in Leicestershire, and their name appears in various historical records from that area during this period. A notable example is John Lawless, who is listed in the Feet of Fines for Leicestershire in 1379.
The Lawless name also has a connection to Ireland, where it is believed to have been introduced by English settlers during the Norman invasion in the 12th century. Over time, the name became well-established in various parts of Ireland, particularly in counties such as Kildare and Laois.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Lawless name in Ireland can be found in the Annals of the Four Masters, which mention a Hugh Lawless who died in 1330. The name also appears in various Irish records from the 16th and 17th centuries, including the Fiants of the Tudor Sovereigns and the Census of Ireland from 1659.
Notable individuals with the Lawless surname include:
1. Thomas Lawless (c.1530-1605), an Irish Catholic priest and scholar who served as the Archbishop of Dublin from 1574 until his death.
2. Valentine Lawless (1628-1688), an Irish soldier and landowner who fought for the Royalist cause during the English Civil War.
3. Sir Nicholas Lawless (1639-1703), an Irish soldier and politician who served as the Governor of Galway during the Williamite War.
4. John Lawless (1773-1837), an Irish politician and judge who served as the Chief Baron of the Irish Exchequer.
5. John Lawless (1837-1923), an Irish-born Australian politician who served as a member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly.
While the Lawless surname has its origins in England and Ireland, it has since spread to other parts of the world, including North America and Australia, due to migration and immigration patterns over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lawless
Among Census respondents with the surname Lawless, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.8%. The next largest groups are Black (4.1%) and Two or More Races (3.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Lawless 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 Lawless surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.8% · 7,575
- Black or African American4.1% · 358
- Two or more races3.6% · 307
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 260
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 70
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 58
Timeline
Historical Census data for Lawless
Lawless 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
#3,903
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,093
+260 bearers (+2.9%)
Per 100,000 3.08
Rank movement Down 214 places
2020
#3,992
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,628
-465 bearers (-5.1%)
Per 100,000 2.89
Rank movement Down 89 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,689 | 8,833 | 3.27 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,903 | 9,093 | 3.08 | +260 bearers (+2.9%) | Down 214 places |
| 2020 | #3,992 | 8,628 | 2.89 | -465 bearers (-5.1%) | Down 89 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 Lawless 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 | #3,903 | #3,992 | -2.3% |
| Count | 9,093 | 8,628 | -5.1% |
| Per 100K | 3.08 | 2.89 | -6.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Lawless bearers went from 9,093 to 8,628 (-5.1% change). The surname moved down 89 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,903 to #3,992.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Lawless
FAQ
Lawless surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Lawless?
Name Census estimates that about 9,894 living Americans carry the surname Lawless. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 34,643 residents.
How common is Lawless?
Lawless ranks #3,992 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.89 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 8,628 people with the surname Lawless. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (9,894), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.89 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.89 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Lawless.
Has Lawless become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Lawless went from 9,093 recorded bearers to 8,628. That is a decrease of 465 (-5.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,903 to #3,992.
What does the Census say about the background of Lawless?
Among Census respondents with the surname Lawless, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.8%. The next largest groups are Black (4.1%) and Two or More Races (3.6%). 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 Lawless in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.8% (7,575 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Lawless appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.8%), Black (4.1%), Two or More Races (3.6%). 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 Lawless (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 Lawless mean?
An English surname denoting a person outside the law, or living free of society's legal constraints. 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 Lawless (2.89 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 Lawless?
Find out how many people have the last name Lawless on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.