2000
#132,259
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 118
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Laythe
An English surname derived from a place name, potentially referring to someone from Laythe or Lathe.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 122 Americans carry the last name Laythe. That puts it at #152,339 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,809,462 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Laythe 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
122
1 in 2,809,462
Census rank
#152,339
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
106
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 106 bearers of the surname Laythe in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 152339th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Laythe, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (8.5%) and Two or More Races (8.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Laythe
The surname Laythe is of English origin and is believed to have originated in the medieval period. It is believed to be derived from the Old English word "læde," which means a small stream or brook, suggesting that the name may have been initially given to someone who lived near a brook or stream.
The earliest known record of the surname Laythe dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "de Lath" or "de Lathe." This suggests that the name may have been associated with a specific place or location in England during the Norman period.
In the 13th century, various spellings of the name appear in historical records, such as "Lethe," "Laith," and "Layth." These variations likely occurred due to regional dialects and the inconsistent spelling conventions of the time.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Laythe was Sir John de Laythe, who was born in the late 12th century and served as a Knight Templar during the Crusades. Another notable figure was William Laythe, who was born in 1450 and served as a member of the English Parliament during the reign of King Henry VII.
In the 16th century, the surname Laythe was found in various regions of England, including Yorkshire, where it was associated with the place name "Laythes," which may have been derived from the Old English word "læde." One prominent individual from this period was Robert Laythe, born in 1520, who was a renowned scholar and theologian at the University of Cambridge.
Another notable individual with the surname Laythe was Sir Thomas Laythe, born in 1605, who was a prominent landowner and served as a member of the House of Commons during the English Civil War. In the 18th century, John Laythe, born in 1725, was a renowned architect who designed several notable buildings in London.
Throughout history, the surname Laythe has been associated with various professions and occupations, including knights, scholars, politicians, and architects, indicating its widespread presence across different social strata in England.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Laythe
Among Census respondents with the surname Laythe, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (8.5%) and Two or More Races (8.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Laythe 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 Laythe surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White77.4% · 82
- Hispanic or Latino8.5% · 9
- Two or more races8.5% · 9
- American Indian and Alaska Native3.8% · 4
- Black or African American1.9% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Laythe
Laythe 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
#116,201
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 150
+32 bearers (+27.1%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Up 16,058 places
2020
#152,339
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 106
-44 bearers (-29.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 36,138 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #132,259 | 118 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #116,201 | 150 | 0.05 | +32 bearers (+27.1%) | Up 16,058 places |
| 2020 | #152,339 | 106 | 0.04 | -44 bearers (-29.3%) | Down 36,138 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 Laythe 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 | #116,201 | #152,339 | -31.1% |
| Count | 150 | 106 | -29.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.04 | -29.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Laythe bearers went from 150 to 106 (-29.3% change). The surname moved down 36,138 positions in the national ranking, going from #116,201 to #152,339.
FAQ
Laythe surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Laythe?
Name Census estimates that about 122 living Americans carry the surname Laythe. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,809,462 residents.
How common is Laythe?
Laythe ranks #152,339 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 106 people with the surname Laythe. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (122), 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 Laythe.
Has Laythe become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Laythe went from 150 recorded bearers to 106. That is a decrease of 44 (-29.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #116,201 to #152,339.
What does the Census say about the background of Laythe?
Among Census respondents with the surname Laythe, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (8.5%) and Two or More Races (8.5%). 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 Laythe in the 2020 Census, accounting for 77.4% (82 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Laythe appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (77.4%), Hispanic (8.5%), Two or More Races (8.5%). 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 Laythe (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 Laythe mean?
An English surname derived from a place name, potentially referring to someone from Laythe or Lathe. 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 Laythe (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 are called Laythe?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans have the surname Laythe at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.