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

Lichtman, 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 Lichtman surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Lichtman in America

Lichtman is the 20648th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Lichtman surname appeared 1,282 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Lichtman.

We can also compare 2010 data for Lichtman 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 Lichtman

The surname LICHTMAN is of Ashkenazi Jewish origin, tracing its roots to the German-speaking regions of Central and Eastern Europe. It is a combination of the German words "licht" meaning light, and "mann" meaning man, suggesting it may have originated as an occupational name for someone who worked with or dealt in lights or candles.

The earliest known record of the surname LICHTMAN dates back to the late 17th century in the region of Silesia, which is now part of modern-day Poland and Germany. The name appears in various spellings such as Lichtmann, Lichtman, and Lihtman in historical documents from this period.

In the 18th and 19th centuries, LICHTMAN families were found in various parts of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, including Galicia (now part of Poland and Ukraine), Bohemia (now part of the Czech Republic), and Hungary. Notable individuals with this surname from this era include Rabbi Yitzchak Lichtman (1824-1889), a prominent Hasidic leader and author from Zamosc, Poland.

As the Jewish diaspora spread across Europe and eventually to the Americas, the LICHTMAN name traveled with them. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name in the United States is that of Solomon Lichtman, who immigrated from Austria-Hungary in the late 19th century and settled in New York.

Other notable individuals with the surname LICHTMAN include:

1. Martin Lichtman (1939-2022), an American psychologist and co-author of the Lichtman Organizational Diagnostic Survey.
2. Allan Lichtman (born 1947), an American historian and author known for his "13 Keys" system for predicting U.S. presidential elections.
3. Joseph Lichtman (1917-2008), an American businessman and philanthropist who founded the Lichtman Corporation.
4. Leonard Lichtman (1925-2001), an American psychologist and author who specialized in the study of aging.
5. Sarah Lichtman (born 1980), an American journalist and podcaster known for her work on the "Pitch" and "Happier" podcasts.

While the LICHTMAN name may have originated as an occupational surname, over time it has become a distinct family name carried by individuals from diverse backgrounds and professions.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Lichtman

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

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

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

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