2000
#55,849
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 343
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.13
Very Rare Last name
Leezer
A surname derived from the Dutch word leeser, meaning reader or lecturer.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 421 Americans carry the last name Leezer. That puts it at #59,512 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.12 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 814,143 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Leezer 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
421
1 in 814,143
Census rank
#59,512
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
367
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 367 bearers of the surname Leezer in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.12 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 59512th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Leezer, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.6%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (0.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Leezer
The surname LEEZER has its origins in the Netherlands and can be traced back to the 15th century. It is believed to be derived from the Dutch word "leezer", which means "reader" or "lecturer". This suggests that the name may have been given to someone who worked as a reader or lecturer, possibly in a church or educational institution.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Dutch city of Utrecht in the late 1400s. In a church register from 1482, there is an entry for a man named Pieter Leezer, who was a schoolmaster and teacher of Latin.
The LEEZER name also appears in several other historical documents from the Netherlands, including tax records and property deeds. In the town of Leiden, there is a record of a Johannes Leezer who owned a printing press in the 16th century.
As the Dutch people began to emigrate to other parts of the world, the LEEZER name spread to different countries. In the late 17th century, a man named Gerrit Leezer was among the early Dutch settlers in South Africa. He established a farm in the Western Cape region and is considered one of the first recorded individuals with the LEEZER surname in that country.
Another notable bearer of the LEEZER name was Dirk Leezer, a Dutch merchant who lived in the 18th century. He was involved in the spice trade and had business dealings in the Dutch East Indies (present-day Indonesia).
In the United States, one of the earliest recorded examples of the LEEZER surname can be found in the state of Pennsylvania. In 1733, a man named Hendrick Leezer arrived in Philadelphia from the Netherlands and became a farmer in the area.
Other notable individuals with the LEEZER surname throughout history include:
1. Adriaan Leezer (1691-1758), a Dutch painter known for his landscape and still life works.
2. Willem Leezer (1806-1872), a Dutch politician and member of the Dutch Parliament.
3. Jacobus Leezer (1845-1912), a South African farmer and landowner in the Cape Colony.
4. Pieter Leezer (1878-1941), a Dutch architect who designed several notable buildings in Amsterdam.
5. Hugo Leezer (1920-1998), a Dutch writer and poet who published several collections of poems and short stories.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Leezer
Among Census respondents with the surname Leezer, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.6%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (0.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Leezer 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 Leezer surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White97.3% · 357
- Hispanic or Latino1.6% · 6
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 2
- Two or more races0.5% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Leezer
Leezer 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
#59,470
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 340
-3 bearers (-0.9%)
Per 100,000 0.12
Rank movement Down 3,621 places
2020
#59,512
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 367
+27 bearers (+7.9%)
Per 100,000 0.12
Rank movement Down 42 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #55,849 | 343 | 0.13 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #59,470 | 340 | 0.12 | -3 bearers (-0.9%) | Down 3,621 places |
| 2020 | #59,512 | 367 | 0.12 | +27 bearers (+7.9%) | Down 42 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 Leezer 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 | #59,470 | #59,512 | -0.1% |
| Count | 340 | 367 | 7.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.12 | 0.12 | 2.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Leezer bearers went from 340 to 367 (+7.9% change). The surname moved down 42 positions in the national ranking, going from #59,470 to #59,512.
FAQ
Leezer surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Leezer?
Name Census estimates that about 421 living Americans carry the surname Leezer. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 814,143 residents.
How common is Leezer?
Leezer ranks #59,512 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.12 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 367 people with the surname Leezer. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (421), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.12 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.12 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 Leezer.
Has Leezer become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Leezer went from 340 recorded bearers to 367. That is an increase of 27 (+7.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #59,470 to #59,512.
What does the Census say about the background of Leezer?
Among Census respondents with the surname Leezer, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.6%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (0.5%). 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 Leezer in the 2020 Census, accounting for 97.3% (357 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Leezer appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (97.3%), Hispanic (1.6%), American Indian/Alaska Native (0.5%). 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 Leezer (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 Leezer mean?
A surname derived from the Dutch word leeser, meaning reader or lecturer. 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 Leezer (0.12 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 Leezer?
See how many people have the last name Leezer on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.