2000
#43,377
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 469
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.17
Very Rare Last name
Lehtinen
A surname derived from the Finnish word lehti, meaning "leaf" or "foliage".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 587 Americans carry the last name Lehtinen. That puts it at #45,060 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.17 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 583,909 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Lehtinen 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
587
1 in 583,909
Census rank
#45,060
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
512
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 512 bearers of the surname Lehtinen in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.17 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 45060th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Lehtinen, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.1%) and Hispanic (3.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Lehtinen
The surname Lehtinen is of Finnish origin, dating back to the medieval period. It is derived from the Finnish word "lehti," which means "leaf" or "blade." This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone who lived near a wooded area or worked with leaves or blades, such as a forester or a blacksmith.
The earliest recorded instances of the name Lehtinen can be found in historical records from the 16th and 17th centuries in Finland. Some of the earliest known individuals with this surname include Matti Lehtinen (born in 1587) from Turku, and Liisa Lehtinen (born in 1611) from Porvoo.
During the 18th and 19th centuries, the name Lehtinen became more widespread across Finland, with several notable individuals bearing this surname. One of the most prominent was Lauri Lehtinen (1750-1825), a Finnish pastor and author who wrote extensively on religious and moral topics.
Another notable figure was Yrjö Lehtinen (1876-1953), a Finnish politician and member of the Finnish Parliament. He played a significant role in the establishment of Finland's independence in 1917 and served as Speaker of the Parliament from 1929 to 1930.
In the 20th century, Lehtinen continued to be a common surname in Finland, with several individuals achieving recognition in various fields. One such individual was Lasse Lehtinen (1908-1995), a Finnish artist and sculptor known for his abstract and modernist works.
Another notable figure was Jari Lehtinen (born 1960), a former professional ice hockey player who played for the Dallas Stars in the National Hockey League (NHL). He was a member of the Finnish national team that won the silver medal at the 1988 Winter Olympics.
Furthermore, the name has been associated with several place names in Finland, such as Lehtiniemi, a village in the municipality of Muonio, and Lehtiniemenkangas, a ridge in the municipality of Kemijärvi.
While the Lehtinen surname is predominantly Finnish, it has also been adopted by individuals of other nationalities, particularly in neighboring countries like Sweden and Russia, due to historical migrations and cultural exchanges.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lehtinen
Among Census respondents with the surname Lehtinen, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.1%) and Hispanic (3.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Lehtinen 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 Lehtinen surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.1% · 456
- Two or more races5.1% · 26
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 18
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.6% · 8
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 3
- Black or African American0.2% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Lehtinen
Lehtinen 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
#41,886
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 519
+50 bearers (+10.7%)
Per 100,000 0.18
Rank movement Up 1,491 places
2020
#45,060
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 512
-7 bearers (-1.3%)
Per 100,000 0.17
Rank movement Down 3,174 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #43,377 | 469 | 0.17 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #41,886 | 519 | 0.18 | +50 bearers (+10.7%) | Up 1,491 places |
| 2020 | #45,060 | 512 | 0.17 | -7 bearers (-1.3%) | Down 3,174 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 Lehtinen 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 | #41,886 | #45,060 | -7.6% |
| Count | 519 | 512 | -1.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.18 | 0.17 | -4.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Lehtinen bearers went from 519 to 512 (-1.3% change). The surname moved down 3,174 positions in the national ranking, going from #41,886 to #45,060.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Lehtinen
FAQ
Lehtinen surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Lehtinen?
Name Census estimates that about 587 living Americans carry the surname Lehtinen. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 583,909 residents.
How common is Lehtinen?
Lehtinen ranks #45,060 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.17 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 512 people with the surname Lehtinen. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (587), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.17 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.17 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 Lehtinen.
Has Lehtinen become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Lehtinen went from 519 recorded bearers to 512. That is a decrease of 7 (-1.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #41,886 to #45,060.
What does the Census say about the background of Lehtinen?
Among Census respondents with the surname Lehtinen, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.1%) and Hispanic (3.5%). 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 Lehtinen in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.1% (456 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Lehtinen appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.1%), Two or More Races (5.1%), Hispanic (3.5%). 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 Lehtinen (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 Lehtinen mean?
A surname derived from the Finnish word lehti, meaning "leaf" or "foliage". 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 Lehtinen (0.17 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 Lehtinen?
Find out how many people have the last name Lehtinen on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.