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

Lerner, 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 Lerner surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Lerner in America

Lerner is the 4625th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Lerner surname appeared 7,672 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 3 people would have the surname Lerner.

We can also compare 2010 data for Lerner 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 Lerner

The surname Lerner originated in the German regions of Bavaria and Austria during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Middle High German word "lernen," meaning "to learn" or "to study." This suggests that the name was likely given to someone who was a scholar, teacher, or student.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Lerner can be found in the Codex Traditionum Lunaelacensis, a medieval manuscript from the Benedictine monastery of Lunelacus in Bavaria, dated to the early 13th century. The manuscript mentions a "Chunradus Lernære" (Conrad the Learner) who was a monk at the monastery.

In the 14th century, the name Lerner appeared in various records from the cities of Nuremberg and Augsburg in Bavaria. For example, a "Hans Lerner" is mentioned in the Nuremberg city records of 1387 as a merchant and member of the local guild.

The surname Lerner is also found in the historical records of the city of Vienna, Austria, where it was sometimes spelled as "Lehrner." In the 16th century, a "Georg Lehrner" (born around 1520) was a renowned clockmaker and engineer who worked on the construction of the iconic clock tower at St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna.

Another notable bearer of the name Lerner was the German poet and novelist Gottfried Lerner (1661-1728), who was born in Nuremberg and is considered one of the leading figures of the Baroque period in German literature.

In the 19th century, the surname Lerner was associated with the Jewish community in Central Europe. One prominent figure was the Austrian writer and journalist Adolf Lerner (1834-1890), who was born in Brünn (now Brno, Czech Republic) and was a prominent advocate for Jewish emancipation and assimilation.

The name Lerner has also been found in various place names throughout Central Europe, such as Lernerhof (a village in Bavaria) and Lernau (a town in Austria), which further underscores the historical significance and geographical spread of this surname.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Lerner

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

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

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

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