2000
#7,560
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,056
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.50
Rare Last name
Leopold
A German surname derived from the Old High German words "liut," meaning people, and "bald," meaning bold or brave.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,683 Americans carry the last name Leopold. That puts it at #7,796 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.37 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 73,191 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Leopold 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 Leopold with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.7K
1 in 73,191
Census rank
#7,796
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,084 bearers of the surname Leopold in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.37 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7796th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Leopold, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.4%. The next largest groups are Black (7.1%) and Hispanic (3.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of 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.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Leopold
Among Census respondents with the surname Leopold, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.4%. The next largest groups are Black (7.1%) and Hispanic (3.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Leopold 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 Leopold surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White83.4% · 3,406
- Black or African American7.1% · 289
- Hispanic or Latino3.9% · 160
- Two or more races2.4% · 96
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.1% · 84
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.2% · 49
Timeline
Historical Census data for Leopold
Leopold 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
#7,536
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,411
+355 bearers (+8.8%)
Per 100,000 1.50
Rank movement Up 24 places
2020
#7,796
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,084
-327 bearers (-7.4%)
Per 100,000 1.37
Rank movement Down 260 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,560 | 4,056 | 1.50 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,536 | 4,411 | 1.50 | +355 bearers (+8.8%) | Up 24 places |
| 2020 | #7,796 | 4,084 | 1.37 | -327 bearers (-7.4%) | Down 260 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 Leopold 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 | #7,536 | #7,796 | -3.5% |
| Count | 4,411 | 4,084 | -7.4% |
| Per 100K | 1.50 | 1.37 | -8.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Leopold bearers went from 4,411 to 4,084 (-7.4% change). The surname moved down 260 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,536 to #7,796.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Leopold
FAQ
Leopold surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Leopold?
Name Census estimates that about 4,683 living Americans carry the surname Leopold. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 73,191 residents.
How common is Leopold?
Leopold ranks #7,796 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.37 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 4,084 people with the surname Leopold. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,683), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.37 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.37 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 Leopold.
Has Leopold become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Leopold went from 4,411 recorded bearers to 4,084. That is a decrease of 327 (-7.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,536 to #7,796.
What does the Census say about the background of Leopold?
Among Census respondents with the surname Leopold, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.4%. The next largest groups are Black (7.1%) and Hispanic (3.9%). 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 Leopold in the 2020 Census, accounting for 83.4% (3,406 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Leopold appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (83.4%), Black (7.1%), Hispanic (3.9%). 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 Leopold (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 Leopold mean?
A German surname derived from the Old High German words "liut," meaning people, and "bald," meaning bold or brave. 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 Leopold (1.37 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 common is the surname Leopold?
Want to know how many people have the surname Leopold? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.