2000
#7,231
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,256
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.58
Rare Last name
Lazarus
A surname derived from the biblical figure Lazarus, meaning "God has helped" in Hebrew.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,882 Americans carry the last name Lazarus. That puts it at #7,532 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.42 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 70,208 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Lazarus 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 Lazarus with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.9K
1 in 70,208
Census rank
#7,532
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,257 bearers of the surname Lazarus in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.42 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7532nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Lazarus, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.7%. The next largest groups are Black (8.1%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (5.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Lazarus
The surname Lazarus originated in ancient Greece, derived from the Hebrew name Eleazar, meaning "God has helped." It first appeared in the Bible as the name of the brother of Mary and Martha, who was raised from the dead by Jesus Christ. This biblical association contributed to the name's widespread adoption across Europe during the Middle Ages.
Lazarus is a variant of the Greek name Lazaros, which was transliterated into Latin as Lazarus. The name spread throughout the Byzantine Empire and was later adopted by various European cultures, resulting in different spellings such as Lazare in French, Lázaro in Spanish, and Lazzaro in Italian.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Lazarus can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which documented landowners in England after the Norman Conquest. The book mentions a landowner named Lazarus in Norfolk, indicating the name's presence in England during the 11th century.
In the 13th century, a prominent English scholar named Roger Lazarus (c. 1200-1274) gained recognition for his work on canon law. He served as the Chancellor of the University of Cambridge and contributed significantly to the development of legal education in England.
During the 15th century, the surname Lazarus appeared in various parts of Europe. One notable figure was Lazarus Rainer (c. 1450-1518), a German humanist, poet, and teacher who worked at the University of Vienna and was known for his Latin poetry.
In the 16th century, the name gained prominence in Italy with the artist Sebastiano Lazari (c. 1505-1557), also known as Sebastiano del Piombo. He was a prominent Renaissance painter and a contemporary of Michelangelo, known for his oil paintings and frescoes in churches in Rome.
Another notable figure with the surname Lazarus was Emma Lazarus (1849-1887), an American poet and writer of Sephardic Jewish descent. Her famous sonnet "The New Colossus" is inscribed on the Statue of Liberty, celebrating the United States as a land of opportunity for immigrants.
The surname Lazarus has also been associated with various places and landmarks. For example, the island of Lazarus off the coast of Larnaca, Cyprus, is believed to have been named after the biblical Lazarus, who was said to have taken refuge there after his resurrection.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lazarus
Among Census respondents with the surname Lazarus, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.7%. The next largest groups are Black (8.1%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (5.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Lazarus 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 Lazarus surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White77.7% · 3,309
- Black or African American8.1% · 344
- Asian and Pacific Islander5.0% · 212
- Hispanic or Latino4.8% · 204
- Two or more races4.2% · 177
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 11
Timeline
Historical Census data for Lazarus
Lazarus 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
#7,541
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,410
+154 bearers (+3.6%)
Per 100,000 1.50
Rank movement Down 310 places
2020
#7,532
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,257
-153 bearers (-3.5%)
Per 100,000 1.42
Rank movement Up 9 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,231 | 4,256 | 1.58 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,541 | 4,410 | 1.50 | +154 bearers (+3.6%) | Down 310 places |
| 2020 | #7,532 | 4,257 | 1.42 | -153 bearers (-3.5%) | Up 9 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 Lazarus 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 | #7,541 | #7,532 | 0.1% |
| Count | 4,410 | 4,257 | -3.5% |
| Per 100K | 1.50 | 1.42 | -5.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Lazarus bearers went from 4,410 to 4,257 (-3.5% change). The surname moved up 9 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,541 to #7,532.
FAQ
Lazarus surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Lazarus?
Name Census estimates that about 4,882 living Americans carry the surname Lazarus. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 70,208 residents.
How common is Lazarus?
Lazarus ranks #7,532 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.42 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 4,257 people with the surname Lazarus. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,882), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.42 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.42 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 Lazarus.
Has Lazarus become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Lazarus went from 4,410 recorded bearers to 4,257. That is a decrease of 153 (-3.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #7,541 to #7,532.
What does the Census say about the background of Lazarus?
Among Census respondents with the surname Lazarus, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.7%. The next largest groups are Black (8.1%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (5.0%). 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 Lazarus in the 2020 Census, accounting for 77.7% (3,309 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Lazarus appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (77.7%), Black (8.1%), Asian/Pacific Islander (5.0%). 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 Lazarus (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 Lazarus mean?
A surname derived from the biblical figure Lazarus, meaning "God has helped" in Hebrew. 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 Lazarus (1.42 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 Lazarus?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.