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

Leith, 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 Leith surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Leith in America

Leith is the 12642nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Leith surname appeared 2,448 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Leith.

We can also compare 2010 data for Leith 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 Leith

The surname Leith has its origins in Scotland, particularly in the region around Edinburgh. It is believed to have derived from the town of Leith, which was an important maritime center and port during the Middle Ages. The name Leith likely comes from the old Brittonic word 'leto', meaning 'warm meadow' or 'warm place'.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Leith dates back to the 13th century. It appears in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which documented the Scottish nobles who were forced to swear allegiance to Edward I of England. In this document, a man named Alexander de Lethe is listed as a landowner from the area around Edinburgh.

The name Leith can also be found in various other historical records from Scotland, such as the Exchequer Rolls and the Register of the Great Seal of Scotland. In the 15th century, a Robert Leith is mentioned as a burgess of Edinburgh, indicating that the family had gained prominence in the city.

One notable bearer of the name Leith was Sir James Leith (1554-1613), a Scottish merchant and financier who served as the Lord Provost of Edinburgh from 1609 to 1611. He played a significant role in the development of the city and was involved in various trade and commercial ventures.

Another prominent individual with the surname Leith was Sir Alexander Leith (1758-1835), a British naval officer who served in the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars. He was celebrated for his bravery and leadership, and was appointed a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath in 1815.

In the literary world, the name Leith is associated with Muriel Spark (1918-2006), the renowned Scottish novelist and poet. Her full name was Muriel Sarah Camberg Leith Spark, and she was born in Edinburgh to a family with the Leith surname.

Other notable individuals with the surname Leith include John Leith (1928-2021), a British mathematician and computer scientist known for his contributions to the field of numerical analysis, and Robert Leith (1828-1906), a Scottish architect who designed several notable buildings in Edinburgh and Glasgow.

The surname Leith continues to be predominantly found in Scotland, particularly in the regions around Edinburgh and the Lothians. It has also spread to other parts of the United Kingdom and beyond, carried by Scottish emigrants and their descendants.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Leith

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

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!