2000
#133,114
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Leip
A German occupational surname derived from the Middle High German word "leipe" meaning gruel or porridge seller.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 139 Americans carry the last name Leip. That puts it at #141,309 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,465,859 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Leip 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
139
1 in 2,465,859
Census rank
#141,309
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
121
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 121 bearers of the surname Leip in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 141309th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Leip, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.0%) and Black (0.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Leip
The surname LEIP originated in Germany during the medieval period. It is believed to be derived from the Old German word "leiba," which means "living" or "life." The name was likely first adopted by someone who lived in a particular area or was associated with a particular occupation related to life or living.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name LEIP can be found in the Cologne Cathedral records from the 13th century, where a person named Henricus Leip is mentioned. This suggests that the name was already in use by that time in the Cologne region of Germany.
In the 14th century, the name LEIP appeared in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae Regiae, a collection of historical documents from Saxony. This indicates that the name had spread to other parts of Germany by that time.
During the 16th century, the name LEIP was recorded in the town of Halle, where a baker named Hans Leip was born in 1523. This is one of the earliest known individuals with this surname and his profession as a baker may have been related to the meaning of the name.
Another notable person with the surname LEIP was Johannes Leip, a German theologian and author who lived from 1619 to 1687. He was born in Nuremberg and wrote several works on theology and religious subjects.
In the 18th century, a composer named Johann Leip was born in Bamberg, Germany, in 1723. He composed various works for the church and is considered one of the notable figures in German baroque music.
The surname LEIP has also been associated with places like Leipheim, a town in Bavaria, which may have influenced the spelling and pronunciation of the name in certain regions.
Throughout its history, the surname LEIP has been spelled in various ways, including Leip, Leyp, Leype, and Leippe, reflecting the regional variations and linguistic changes over time.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Leip
Among Census respondents with the surname Leip, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.0%) and Black (0.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Leip 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 Leip surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.6% · 112
- Two or more races5.0% · 6
- Black or African American0.8% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Leip
Leip 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
#149,395
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
-7 bearers (-6.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 16,281 places
2020
#141,309
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 121
+11 bearers (+10.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 8,086 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #133,114 | 117 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #149,395 | 110 | 0.04 | -7 bearers (-6.0%) | Down 16,281 places |
| 2020 | #141,309 | 121 | 0.04 | +11 bearers (+10.0%) | Up 8,086 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 Leip 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 | #149,395 | #141,309 | 5.4% |
| Count | 110 | 121 | 10.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | 1.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Leip bearers went from 110 to 121 (+10.0% change). The surname moved up 8,086 positions in the national ranking, going from #149,395 to #141,309.
FAQ
Leip surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Leip?
Name Census estimates that about 139 living Americans carry the surname Leip. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,465,859 residents.
How common is Leip?
Leip ranks #141,309 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 121 people with the surname Leip. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (139), 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 Leip.
Has Leip become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Leip went from 110 recorded bearers to 121. That is an increase of 11 (+10.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #149,395 to #141,309.
What does the Census say about the background of Leip?
Among Census respondents with the surname Leip, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.0%) and Black (0.8%). 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 Leip in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.6% (112 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Leip appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.6%), Two or More Races (5.0%), Black (0.8%). 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 Leip (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 Leip mean?
A German occupational surname derived from the Middle High German word "leipe" meaning gruel or porridge seller. 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 Leip (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 surname Leip?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.