Leadbeater last name popularity, history, and meaning

Find out how popular the last name Leadbeater is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Leadbeater.

Meaning of Leadbeater

A surname derived from an occupational name for someone who led pack animals or beat a path for travelers.

Leadbeater, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Leadbeater surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Leadbeater in America

Leadbeater is the 93513th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Leadbeater surname appeared 196 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Leadbeater.

We can also compare 2010 data for Leadbeater to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

20102000Change (%)
Rank935136897330.21%
Count196266-30.30%
Proportion per 100k0.070.10-35.29%

The history of the last name Leadbeater

The surname Leadbeater is of English origin, rooted in the medieval occupation of lead beating or working with lead. It emerged during the 13th century in various parts of England, particularly in Yorkshire and Lancashire.

This surname is derived from the Old English words "lead" and "beater," referring to a craftsman who beat or shaped lead for use in construction, roofing, or other purposes. The earliest recorded spelling of the name appears as "Ledbeter" in the Hundred Rolls of Lincolnshire in 1273.

Records from the 14th century mention a Johannes Ledbetere in the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex in 1327. The name also appears in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire in 1379 as William Ledbeter, indicating the spread of the surname across different regions.

One notable historical figure bearing this surname was John Leadbeater (1725-1799), an English civil engineer and surveyor who worked on several important canal projects in the 18th century, including the Bridgewater Canal.

Another prominent individual was Mary Leadbeater (1758-1826), an Irish writer and poet who contributed to the literary circles of her time and published works such as "Cottage Dialogues" and "The Leadbeater Papers."

In the realm of science, Charles Webster Leadbeater (1854-1934) was a notable English theosophist and author who wrote extensively on topics related to Theosophy and occultism, including "The Astral Plane" and "The Hidden Side of Things."

The name Leadbeater has also been associated with various places, such as Leadbeater's Farm in Virginia, named after Abram Leadbeater, an early settler in the region during the 17th century.

Throughout history, variations in the spelling of the surname Leadbeater have been observed, including Leadbetter, Leadbater, and Ledbeter, reflecting the evolving nature of surnames and regional variations in pronunciation and spelling.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Leadbeater

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Leadbeater.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

  1. White only
  2. Black only
  3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
  4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
  5. Hispanic
  6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Leadbeater was:

Race/EthnicityPercentageTotal Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only89.29%175
Non-Hispanic Black Only3.06%6
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only(S)%(S)
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native(S)%(S)
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races3.06%6
Hispanic Origin3.06%6

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Leadbeater has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

20102000Change (%)
White89.29%95.49%-6.71%
Black3.06%1.88%47.77%
Asian and Pacific Islander(S)%(S)%(S)%
American Indian and Alaskan Native(S)%0.00%(S)%
Two or More Races3.06%(S)%(S)%
Hispanic3.06%(S)%(S)%

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Leadbeater was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Leadbeater, please contact us.

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