2000
#12,032
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,382
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.88
Rare Last name
Licon
A Spanish surname derived from a place name, possibly referring to a town or village.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,001 Americans carry the last name Licon. That puts it at #11,503 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.88 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 114,213 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Licon 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
3.0K
1 in 114,213
Census rank
#11,503
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,617 bearers of the surname Licon in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.88 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11503rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Licon, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 89.5%. The next largest groups are White (9.0%) and Two or More Races (0.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Licon
The surname Licon is believed to have originated in Spain during the medieval period. It is derived from the Spanish word "licón," which means a young wild boar or a young wolf. This suggests that the name may have been a descriptive nickname for a fierce or courageous individual.
Licon is thought to have been initially used in the regions of Castile and Aragon, where it was likely adopted as a hereditary surname by families living in or near areas with significant wild boar or wolf populations. Early variations of the spelling included Lycon, Lychon, and Lichon.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Licon can be found in the "Libro de la Montería" (Book of the Hunt), a 14th-century manuscript detailing hunting traditions and techniques in medieval Spain. It mentions a certain Pero Licon, a huntsman in the service of King Alfonso XI of Castile (1311-1350).
Another notable bearer of the name was Juan Licon, a Spanish explorer and conquistador who accompanied Hernán Cortés on his expedition to Mexico in the early 16th century. Juan Licon was among the first Europeans to set foot in the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan (present-day Mexico City) in 1519.
In the 17th century, the name appeared in the records of the Spanish Inquisition, with a certain Diego Licon being accused of heresy in 1624. This suggests that the Licon family had established itself in various parts of Spain by that time.
During the 18th century, a prominent Spanish military figure named Joaquín Licon (1728-1795) served as a general in the Spanish Army and participated in the Siege of Gibraltar during the American Revolutionary War.
Another notable bearer of the Licon surname was María Licon (1815-1890), a Spanish poet and writer who was part of the Romantic literary movement in Spain. Her works, which often explored themes of love and nature, were widely acclaimed during her lifetime.
While the Licon surname is most closely associated with Spain, it has also been carried by individuals of Spanish descent in various parts of the world, including Latin America and the United States, due to migration and cultural diffusion over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Licon
Among Census respondents with the surname Licon, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 89.5%. The next largest groups are White (9.0%) and Two or More Races (0.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Licon 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 Licon surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino89.5% · 2,341
- White9.0% · 235
- Two or more races0.5% · 13
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 12
- Black or African American0.3% · 9
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.3% · 7
Timeline
Historical Census data for Licon
Licon 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
#11,430
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,756
+374 bearers (+15.7%)
Per 100,000 0.93
Rank movement Up 602 places
2020
#11,503
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,617
-139 bearers (-5.0%)
Per 100,000 0.88
Rank movement Down 73 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,032 | 2,382 | 0.88 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,430 | 2,756 | 0.93 | +374 bearers (+15.7%) | Up 602 places |
| 2020 | #11,503 | 2,617 | 0.88 | -139 bearers (-5.0%) | Down 73 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 Licon 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 | #11,430 | #11,503 | -0.6% |
| Count | 2,756 | 2,617 | -5.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.93 | 0.88 | -5.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Licon bearers went from 2,756 to 2,617 (-5.0% change). The surname moved down 73 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,430 to #11,503.
FAQ
Licon surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Licon?
Name Census estimates that about 3,001 living Americans carry the surname Licon. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 114,213 residents.
How common is Licon?
Licon ranks #11,503 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.88 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 2,617 people with the surname Licon. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,001), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.88 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.88 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 Licon.
Has Licon become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Licon went from 2,756 recorded bearers to 2,617. That is a decrease of 139 (-5.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #11,430 to #11,503.
What does the Census say about the background of Licon?
Among Census respondents with the surname Licon, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 89.5%. The next largest groups are White (9.0%) and Two or More Races (0.5%). 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?
Hispanic is the largest self-reported group for the surname Licon in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.5% (2,341 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Licon appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (89.5%), White (9.0%), Two or More Races (0.5%). 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 Licon (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 Licon mean?
A Spanish surname derived from a place name, possibly referring to a town or village. 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 Licon (0.88 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 common is the surname Licon?
Want to know how many people have the last name Licon? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.