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

Leco, 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 Leco surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Leco in America

Leco is the 114424th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Leco surname appeared 153 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 Leco.

We can also compare 2010 data for Leco 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.

The history of the last name Leco

The surname Leco is believed to have originated in Italy, specifically in the northern regions of the country. Its origins can be traced back to the late medieval period, around the 13th or 14th century.

One theory suggests that Leco is a shortened or contracted form of the Italian word "leccato," which means "licked" or "polished." This could suggest that the name may have been initially used as a descriptive nickname for someone who worked with polished or finished products, such as a craftsman or artisan.

Another possible derivation of the name Leco is from the Latin word "lecco," which referred to a type of dried fish or salted fish. In this case, the name could have been associated with someone involved in the fishing or fish trade industry.

While there are no definitive historical records mentioning the name Leco in ancient manuscripts or chronicles, some of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in Italian parish records and civil registries from the 16th and 17th centuries.

One of the earliest known individuals with the surname Leco was Giovanni Leco, a merchant from the city of Genoa, who was born around 1550. Another notable figure was Alessandro Leco, a painter from Venice who lived during the late 16th century and was known for his religious artwork.

In the 18th century, there was a prominent Italian family with the surname Leco who resided in the city of Milan. One member, Antonio Leco (1705-1784), was a renowned architect and engineer who designed several churches and public buildings in the region.

Another individual of note was Francesco Leco (1778-1856), a physician and professor of medicine at the University of Padua. He made significant contributions to the field of anatomy and published several influential works on human physiology.

During the 19th century, the surname Leco also appeared in various regions of Italy, including Tuscany and Calabria. One notable figure from this period was Giuseppe Leco (1825-1898), a writer and journalist from Naples who was actively involved in the Italian unification movement and worked closely with Giuseppe Garibaldi.

While the surname Leco is not exceptionally rare, it is primarily concentrated in certain areas of northern and central Italy, with smaller populations found in other parts of the country and among Italian diaspora communities around the world.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Leco

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

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 Leco was:

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 Leco has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

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 Leco was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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