2000
#12,851
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,195
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.81
Rare Last name
Legge
An English occupational surname referring to a person with a disabled leg or a maker of wooden legs.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,330 Americans carry the last name Legge. That puts it at #14,183 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.68 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 147,105 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Legge 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 Legge with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.3K
1 in 147,105
Census rank
#14,183
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,032 bearers of the surname Legge in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.68 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14183rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Legge, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.4%) and Hispanic (3.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Legge
The surname Legge is an English habitational name that originated from places called Legges or Legge in Kent and Worcestershire. The name is derived from the Old English word 'lecg', meaning a grassy slope or meadow.
The earliest recorded spelling of the surname Legge dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as 'de Legge'. This suggests that the name was already well-established in England by the time of the Norman Conquest in 1066.
During the Middle Ages, the Legge family held significant landholdings in the counties of Kent and Worcestershire. One notable early bearer of the name was Sir John Legge (c. 1415-1472), a Member of Parliament for Kent during the Wars of the Roses.
In the 16th century, the Legge family established themselves as prominent landowners and politicians in the county of Norfolk. William Legge (1562-1607), a Member of Parliament for Norfolk, was the first of many Legges to represent the county in the House of Commons.
The most famous member of the Legge family was George Legge, 1st Baron Dartmouth (1647-1691), an English statesman and naval commander who served as Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal and Master-General of the Ordnance under King Charles II and King James II.
Other notable individuals with the surname Legge include:
1. Thomas Legge (1535-1607), an English clergyman and academic who served as the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambridge from 1604 to 1607.
2. Edward Legge (1663-1720), an English naval officer and Member of Parliament who served as the Governor of the Leeward Islands from 1693 to 1695.
3. William Legge, 2nd Earl of Dartmouth (1672-1750), an English nobleman and politician who served as the Secretary of State for the Southern Department from 1710 to 1713.
4. Henry Bilson Legge (1708-1764), an English lawyer and politician who served as the Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1757 to 1761.
5. Heneage Legge (1704-1759), an English soldier and politician who served as the Governor of Nova Scotia from 1757 to 1759.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Legge
Among Census respondents with the surname Legge, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.4%) and Hispanic (3.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Legge 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 Legge surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.1% · 1,790
- Two or more races4.4% · 89
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 74
- Black or African American2.8% · 57
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 15
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 7
Timeline
Historical Census data for Legge
Legge 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
#14,332
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,088
-107 bearers (-4.9%)
Per 100,000 0.71
Rank movement Down 1,481 places
2020
#14,183
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,032
-56 bearers (-2.7%)
Per 100,000 0.68
Rank movement Up 149 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,851 | 2,195 | 0.81 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #14,332 | 2,088 | 0.71 | -107 bearers (-4.9%) | Down 1,481 places |
| 2020 | #14,183 | 2,032 | 0.68 | -56 bearers (-2.7%) | Up 149 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 Legge 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 | #14,332 | #14,183 | 1.0% |
| Count | 2,088 | 2,032 | -2.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.71 | 0.68 | -4.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Legge bearers went from 2,088 to 2,032 (-2.7% change). The surname moved up 149 positions in the national ranking, going from #14,332 to #14,183.
FAQ
Legge surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Legge?
Name Census estimates that about 2,330 living Americans carry the surname Legge. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 147,105 residents.
How common is Legge?
Legge ranks #14,183 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.68 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 2,032 people with the surname Legge. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,330), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.68 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.68 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 Legge.
Has Legge become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Legge went from 2,088 recorded bearers to 2,032. That is a decrease of 56 (-2.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #14,332 to #14,183.
What does the Census say about the background of Legge?
Among Census respondents with the surname Legge, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.4%) and Hispanic (3.6%). 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 Legge in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.1% (1,790 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Legge appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.1%), Two or More Races (4.4%), Hispanic (3.6%). 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 Legge (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 Legge mean?
An English occupational surname referring to a person with a disabled leg or a maker of wooden legs. 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 Legge (0.68 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 Legge?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.