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

Liberty, 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 Liberty surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Liberty in America

Liberty is the 9184th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Liberty surname appeared 3,552 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Liberty.

We can also compare 2010 data for Liberty 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 Liberty

The surname LIBERTY has its origins in the late 15th century England. It is believed to be derived from the Old French word 'liberte', which means freedom or liberty. This name may have been given to someone who lived in an area with certain freedoms or liberties, or someone who was known for their love of freedom.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the LIBERTY surname dates back to 1487 in the Nottinghamshire county records. A John Liberty is mentioned as a landowner in the village of Mansfield. It is likely that this John Liberty was the first person to adopt the surname, potentially after being granted certain liberties or freedoms by the local lord.

In the 16th century, the LIBERTY surname began to spread across England, with various spelling variations such as Libertie and Liberte appearing in records. One notable example is William Libertie, a merchant from London who is recorded in the Port Books of 1567 as exporting goods to the Netherlands.

The LIBERTY surname also has a connection to the Domesday Book, the great survey of England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. While the surname itself is not mentioned, there are references to places with names derived from the word 'liberty', such as Libertyville in Hertfordshire.

Throughout history, several notable individuals have carried the LIBERTY surname. One of the earliest was Thomas Liberty (c. 1540-1610), an English writer and poet who published works on religious and moral subjects. Another prominent figure was John Liberty (1619-1675), a Puritan minister and one of the founders of the town of Providence, Rhode Island.

In the 18th century, Robert Liberty (1733-1794) was a British naval officer who served in the American Revolutionary War. He later became a Member of Parliament for the Whig party. Another LIBERTY of note was William Liberty (1768-1843), a British army officer who fought in the Napoleonic Wars and later became a successful writer and historian.

One of the most famous individuals with the LIBERTY surname was Marie Liberty (1858-1937), a French feminist and activist who played a significant role in the women's suffrage movement. She was a vocal advocate for women's rights and worked tirelessly to secure the right to vote for French women.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Liberty

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

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

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

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