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

Leopold, 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 Leopold surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Leopold in America

Leopold is the 7536th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Leopold surname appeared 4,411 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Leopold.

We can also compare 2010 data for Leopold 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 Leopold

The surname Leopold has its origins in the German language and is derived from a Germanic personal name that dates back to the 8th century. The name is composed of two elements: "leud" meaning "people" and "bald" meaning "bold" or "brave." The name was originally spelled "Leutbald" or "Luitbald."

The earliest recorded instance of the name Leopold can be found in the Codex Traditionum Monasterii Raittenbuch, a 9th-century manuscript from the Benedictine monastery in Reittenbuch, Bavaria. This document mentions a nobleman named "Liutpaldus" who donated land to the monastery in the year 825.

During the Middle Ages, the name Leopold became popular among the nobility and ruling families of Central Europe, particularly in Austria and Germany. One of the most famous historical figures with this surname was Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor from 1658 to 1705. He was born in Vienna in 1640 and played a significant role in the Wars of the Holy League against the Ottoman Empire.

Another notable Leopold was Leopold II, Duke of Austria, who lived from 1050 to 1095. He was a prominent figure during the Investiture Controversy, a power struggle between the Holy Roman Emperor and the Papacy over the appointment of bishops and abbots.

In the 13th century, a Leopold von Babenberg, known as Leopold VI, Duke of Austria and Styria, was a prominent figure in the Crusades. He participated in the Fifth Crusade and died in 1230 during the Siege of Damietta in Egypt.

The name Leopold also has a connection to the famous explorer and naturalist, Leopold von Buch, who lived from 1774 to 1853. He was a pioneer in the field of geology and made significant contributions to the understanding of volcanic activity and the formation of rocks.

During the 19th century, the name Leopold became more widespread across Europe and was adopted by families outside of Germany and Austria. One notable example is Leopold Kronecker, a German mathematician who lived from 1823 to 1891 and made important contributions to the field of algebra and number theory.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Leopold

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

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

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

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