2000
#2,391
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 13,891
First available Census row
Per 100,000 5.15
Uncommon Last name
Laws
An English toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "hills" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 16,027 Americans carry the last name Laws. That puts it at #2,512 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 4.68 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 21,386 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Laws 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 Laws with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
16K
1 in 21,386
Census rank
#2,512
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
4.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
14K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 13,976 bearers of the surname Laws in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 4.68 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2512th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Laws, the largest self-reported group is White at 68.5%. The next largest groups are Black (22.7%) and Two or More Races (4.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Laws
The surname Laws is of English origin, deriving from the Old English word "lagu" meaning law. It emerged in the Middle Ages as an occupational name for those involved in the legal profession, such as lawyers, judges, or clerks of the court.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire in 1166, where a William Laws is mentioned. The Hundred Rolls of 1273 also list a John de la Lawe in Oxfordshire, showcasing the variant spelling common during that era.
The name Laws is believed to have originated in the county of Yorkshire, where many early bearers of the surname were found. However, it later spread to other parts of England, including Oxfordshire, Gloucestershire, and Lancashire.
In the 13th century, the Domesday Book records a landowner named Robertus de la Lawe in Lincolnshire, indicating the presence of the name in that region as well. This entry provides valuable insight into the medieval origins of the surname.
Notable historical figures bearing the surname Laws include John Laws (c.1632-1688), a prominent English mathematician and theologian who served as a fellow at Christ's College, Cambridge. Another notable bearer was Richard Laws (1728-1784), a British naval officer who played a significant role in the American Revolutionary War.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the surname Laws was also found in Scotland, where it was associated with places like Lawsknowe in Berwickshire and Lawshill in Lanarkshire, further highlighting the connection between the name and the concept of law or legal matters.
Other notable individuals with the surname Laws include Jonathan Laws (1725-1787), an English clergyman and author, and Samuel Laws (1745-1821), an English philanthropist and abolitionist who worked towards the abolition of the slave trade.
Over the centuries, variations in spelling emerged, including Lawes, Lawe, and Laus, reflecting the evolution of language and regional dialects. However, the core meaning of the name remained tied to its legal and occupational origins.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Laws
Among Census respondents with the surname Laws, the largest self-reported group is White at 68.5%. The next largest groups are Black (22.7%) and Two or More Races (4.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Laws 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 Laws surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White68.5% · 9,574
- Black or African American22.7% · 3,179
- Two or more races4.7% · 662
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 411
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 82
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 68
Timeline
Historical Census data for Laws
Laws 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
#2,486
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 14,511
+620 bearers (+4.5%)
Per 100,000 4.92
Rank movement Down 95 places
2020
#2,512
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 13,976
-535 bearers (-3.7%)
Per 100,000 4.68
Rank movement Down 26 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,391 | 13,891 | 5.15 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,486 | 14,511 | 4.92 | +620 bearers (+4.5%) | Down 95 places |
| 2020 | #2,512 | 13,976 | 4.68 | -535 bearers (-3.7%) | Down 26 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 Laws 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 | #2,486 | #2,512 | -1.0% |
| Count | 14,511 | 13,976 | -3.7% |
| Per 100K | 4.92 | 4.68 | -5.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Laws bearers went from 14,511 to 13,976 (-3.7% change). The surname moved down 26 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,486 to #2,512.
FAQ
Laws surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Laws?
Name Census estimates that about 16,027 living Americans carry the surname Laws. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 21,386 residents.
How common is Laws?
Laws ranks #2,512 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 4.68 per 100,000 residents, which is about 5 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 13,976 people with the surname Laws. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (16,027), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 4.68 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 4.68 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 5 of them to have the surname Laws.
Has Laws become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Laws went from 14,511 recorded bearers to 13,976. That is a decrease of 535 (-3.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,486 to #2,512.
What does the Census say about the background of Laws?
Among Census respondents with the surname Laws, the largest self-reported group is White at 68.5%. The next largest groups are Black (22.7%) and Two or More Races (4.7%). 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 Laws in the 2020 Census, accounting for 68.5% (9,574 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Laws appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (68.5%), Black (22.7%), Two or More Races (4.7%). 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 Laws (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 Laws mean?
An English toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "hills" in Old English. 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 Laws (4.68 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 Laws?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the last name Laws at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.