2000
#13,333
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,097
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.78
Rare Last name
Letts
Derived from a nickname for a person of small stature or a habitational name referring to various places.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,420 Americans carry the last name Letts. That puts it at #13,739 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.71 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 141,634 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Letts 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 Letts with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.4K
1 in 141,634
Census rank
#13,739
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,110 bearers of the surname Letts in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.71 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13739th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Letts, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.4%. The next largest groups are Black (8.7%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Letts
The surname Letts originated in England during the late Middle Ages, primarily in the counties of Norfolk and Suffolk. It derived from the Old English word "let," meaning "one who allows or permits." This likely referred to a gatekeeper, a profession associated with the name in its early usage.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273, where it is spelled "Lette." This document, a survey of land ownership in parts of England, mentions a John Lette from Norfolk. The Letts name also surfaces in various 14th-century records from the region.
In the 15th century, the name began appearing in its modern spelling of "Letts." The Subsidy Rolls of 1524 list a Thomas Letts from Beccles, Suffolk, and a John Letts from Bury St. Edmunds, also in Suffolk. These records suggest the name was well-established in East Anglia by this time.
Notable individuals bearing the Letts surname include William Letts (c.1535-1584), a yeoman from Lincolnshire who was involved in a notable court case concerning property rights. Another early figure was John Letts (c.1556-1624), a merchant and landowner from Norfolk.
In the 17th century, the Letts name spread more widely across England. One prominent figure was Sir John Letts (1618-1692), a wealthy merchant and member of the East India Company who served as Lord Mayor of London in 1676.
During the 18th century, the name continued to appear in various records. One noteworthy individual was Thomas Letts (1753-1826), a respected engraver and cartographer from London who produced several highly regarded maps and atlases.
Other notable Letts include the author and journalist Edmund Letts (1825-1913), best known for his work on the literary journal The Athenoum, and the architect and designer John Letts (1878-1952), who designed several notable buildings in London in the early 20th century.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Letts
Among Census respondents with the surname Letts, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.4%. The next largest groups are Black (8.7%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Letts 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 Letts surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White83.4% · 1,760
- Black or African American8.7% · 184
- Two or more races4.0% · 84
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 65
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 13
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Letts
Letts 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
#13,010
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,359
+262 bearers (+12.5%)
Per 100,000 0.80
Rank movement Up 323 places
2020
#13,739
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,110
-249 bearers (-10.6%)
Per 100,000 0.71
Rank movement Down 729 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,333 | 2,097 | 0.78 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,010 | 2,359 | 0.80 | +262 bearers (+12.5%) | Up 323 places |
| 2020 | #13,739 | 2,110 | 0.71 | -249 bearers (-10.6%) | Down 729 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 Letts 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 | #13,010 | #13,739 | -5.6% |
| Count | 2,359 | 2,110 | -10.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.80 | 0.71 | -11.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Letts bearers went from 2,359 to 2,110 (-10.6% change). The surname moved down 729 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,010 to #13,739.
FAQ
Letts surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Letts?
Name Census estimates that about 2,420 living Americans carry the surname Letts. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 141,634 residents.
How common is Letts?
Letts ranks #13,739 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.71 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 2,110 people with the surname Letts. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,420), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.71 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.71 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 Letts.
Has Letts become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Letts went from 2,359 recorded bearers to 2,110. That is a decrease of 249 (-10.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #13,010 to #13,739.
What does the Census say about the background of Letts?
Among Census respondents with the surname Letts, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.4%. The next largest groups are Black (8.7%) and Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Letts in the 2020 Census, accounting for 83.4% (1,760 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Letts appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (83.4%), Black (8.7%), Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Letts (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 Letts mean?
Derived from a nickname for a person of small stature or a habitational name referring to various places. 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 Letts (0.71 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 Americans have the surname Letts?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.