2000
#139,757
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Leckman
A topographic surname referring to someone living near a leak or stream.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 132 Americans carry the last name Leckman. That puts it at #145,757 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,596,624 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Leckman 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
132
1 in 2,596,624
Census rank
#145,757
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
115
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 115 bearers of the surname Leckman in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 145757th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Leckman, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.9%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (4.3%) and Hispanic (1.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Leckman
The surname LECKMAN originated in Germany, with the earliest known records dating back to the 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the Low German word "leck," meaning "leak" or "leakage," and the suffix "-man," indicating a person. This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who lived near a leak or was associated with repairing leaks.
In the 17th century, the name LECKMAN appeared in various German regions, including Westphalia and Hesse. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the parish records of the town of Soest, Westphalia, where a Johann Leckman was mentioned in 1632.
As the name spread across German-speaking territories, variations in spelling emerged, such as Leckmann, Leckemann, and Leckemann. These different spellings reflect regional linguistic variations and the inconsistencies in record-keeping during that time.
One notable bearer of the LECKMAN surname was Johann Friedrich Leckman, a German composer and organist born in 1690 in Altenburg, Saxony. He composed several works for the organ and was known for his skill as a performer.
In the 19th century, the LECKMAN name began to appear in records outside of Germany as individuals emigrated to other parts of Europe and beyond. For instance, a Carl Leckman, born in 1825 in Hesse, is recorded as having settled in the United States in the late 1840s.
Another prominent individual with the LECKMAN surname was Friedrich Wilhelm Leckman, a German artist born in 1832 in Hannover. He specialized in landscape paintings and became a member of the prestigious Berlin Artists' Association.
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the LECKMAN name continued to spread globally, with records showing individuals bearing this surname in countries such as the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia. For example, a William Leckman, born in 1871 in Westphalia, is documented as having immigrated to Australia in 1892.
Throughout its history, the LECKMAN surname has been associated with various professions and walks of life, from artists and musicians to tradesmen and immigrants seeking new opportunities in different parts of the world.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Leckman
Among Census respondents with the surname Leckman, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.9%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (4.3%) and Hispanic (1.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Leckman 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 Leckman surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.9% · 108
- Asian and Pacific Islander4.3% · 5
- Hispanic or Latino1.7% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Leckman
Leckman 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
#146,201
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
+3 bearers (+2.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 6,444 places
2020
#145,757
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
+2 bearers (+1.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 444 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #139,757 | 110 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #146,201 | 113 | 0.04 | +3 bearers (+2.7%) | Down 6,444 places |
| 2020 | #145,757 | 115 | 0.04 | +2 bearers (+1.8%) | Up 444 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 Leckman 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 | #146,201 | #145,757 | 0.3% |
| Count | 113 | 115 | 1.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -3.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Leckman bearers went from 113 to 115 (+1.8% change). The surname moved up 444 positions in the national ranking, going from #146,201 to #145,757.
FAQ
Leckman surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Leckman?
Name Census estimates that about 132 living Americans carry the surname Leckman. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,596,624 residents.
How common is Leckman?
Leckman ranks #145,757 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 115 people with the surname Leckman. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (132), 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 Leckman.
Has Leckman become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Leckman went from 113 recorded bearers to 115. That is an increase of 2 (+1.8%). In the national ranking it rose from #146,201 to #145,757.
What does the Census say about the background of Leckman?
Among Census respondents with the surname Leckman, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.9%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (4.3%) and Hispanic (1.7%). 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 Leckman in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.9% (108 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Leckman appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.9%), Asian/Pacific Islander (4.3%), Hispanic (1.7%). 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 Leckman (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 Leckman mean?
A topographic surname referring to someone living near a leak or stream. 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 Leckman (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 have the last name Leckman?
See how many Americans have the surname Leckman on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.