2000
#8,270
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,685
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.37
Rare Last name
Lerch
A German toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "larch tree."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,835 Americans carry the last name Lerch. That puts it at #9,339 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.12 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 89,375 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Lerch 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
3.8K
1 in 89,375
Census rank
#9,339
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,344 bearers of the surname Lerch in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.12 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9339th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Lerch, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (3.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Lerch
The surname Lerch has its origins in the German language and dates back to the Middle Ages. It is believed to have derived from the Old High German word "lër," which means "larch," a type of coniferous tree. This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone who lived near a larch tree or a forest of larch trees.
In the 13th century, the name Lerch was found in various records and manuscripts from the regions of Bavaria and Austria. One of the earliest documented instances of the name can be traced back to a record from the year 1275, which mentions a person named Chunrat Lerch from the town of Regensburg in Bavaria.
During the 14th and 15th centuries, the name Lerch began to appear more frequently in various parts of Germany, particularly in the southern regions. In the Codex Diplomaticus Brandenburgensis, a collection of historical documents from the Margraviate of Brandenburg, there is a record from 1385 mentioning a man named Hans Lerch from the town of Cottbus.
One of the notable individuals bearing the surname Lerch was Johann Adam Lerch, a German mathematician who lived from 1623 to 1699. He made significant contributions to the field of combinatorics and is known for his work on the theory of partitions.
In the 18th century, the name Lerch gained prominence in the field of music with the birth of Johann Melchior Lerch, a German composer and organist who lived from 1734 to 1801. He was particularly renowned for his compositions for the organ and church music.
Another famous bearer of the surname Lerch was Johann Jakob Lerch, a Swiss-German mathematician who lived from 1868 to 1944. He is best known for his work on the Lerch transcendent, a special function that bears his name and has applications in various areas of mathematics and physics.
In the 19th century, the name Lerch was associated with a prominent family from the town of Lerchenhau in Silesia (now part of Poland). This family played a significant role in the local textile industry and contributed to the economic development of the region.
Variations of the name Lerch have also been found in other parts of Europe, such as the Czech Republic and Austria, where it may have been influenced by the Germanic roots of the name or derived from different linguistic origins.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lerch
Among Census respondents with the surname Lerch, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (3.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Lerch 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 Lerch surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.2% · 3,084
- Two or more races3.3% · 109
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 99
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 23
- Black or African American0.6% · 21
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Lerch
Lerch 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
#8,911
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,674
-11 bearers (-0.3%)
Per 100,000 1.25
Rank movement Down 641 places
2020
#9,339
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,344
-330 bearers (-9.0%)
Per 100,000 1.12
Rank movement Down 428 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,270 | 3,685 | 1.37 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,911 | 3,674 | 1.25 | -11 bearers (-0.3%) | Down 641 places |
| 2020 | #9,339 | 3,344 | 1.12 | -330 bearers (-9.0%) | Down 428 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 Lerch 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 | #8,911 | #9,339 | -4.8% |
| Count | 3,674 | 3,344 | -9.0% |
| Per 100K | 1.25 | 1.12 | -10.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Lerch bearers went from 3,674 to 3,344 (-9.0% change). The surname moved down 428 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,911 to #9,339.
FAQ
Lerch surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Lerch?
Name Census estimates that about 3,835 living Americans carry the surname Lerch. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 89,375 residents.
How common is Lerch?
Lerch ranks #9,339 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.12 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 3,344 people with the surname Lerch. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,835), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.12 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.12 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 Lerch.
Has Lerch become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Lerch went from 3,674 recorded bearers to 3,344. That is a decrease of 330 (-9.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,911 to #9,339.
What does the Census say about the background of Lerch?
Among Census respondents with the surname Lerch, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (3.0%). 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 Lerch in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.2% (3,084 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Lerch appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.2%), Two or More Races (3.3%), Hispanic (3.0%). 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 Lerch (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 Lerch mean?
A German toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "larch tree." 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 Lerch (1.12 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 Lerch?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.