2000
#6,786
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,579
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.70
Rare Last name
Liddell
A Scottish locational surname derived from a place near Jedburgh, from the Old English "hlyde" and "dale" meaning "loud valley."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,534 Americans carry the last name Liddell. That puts it at #6,719 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.61 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 61,936 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Liddell 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 Liddell with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
5.5K
1 in 61,936
Census rank
#6,719
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,826 bearers of the surname Liddell in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.61 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6719th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Liddell, the largest self-reported group is White at 50.4%. The next largest groups are Black (40.6%) and Two or More Races (5.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Liddell
The surname Liddell is of Anglo-Saxon origin and traces its roots back to the medieval counties of Durham and Northumberland in England. It is thought to have derived from the Old English words "hlið" meaning "hill slope" and "fell" meaning "hill," suggesting the name originally referred to someone who lived on a hillside.
One of the earliest recorded references to the surname appears in the Pipe Rolls of Northumberland in 1230, where it is listed as "Lidel." Other early spellings include "Lidell," "Liddel," and "Liddill." The surname is also mentioned in the Hundred Rolls of Northumberland in 1273, indicating its prevalence in the region during the Middle Ages.
In the Domesday Book of 1086, a record of landowners in England commissioned by William the Conqueror, several place names are listed that may have contributed to the formation of the surname. These include "Liddel" in Cumberland and "Liddesdale" in Roxburghshire, Scotland.
Notable individuals with the surname Liddell throughout history include:
1. Sir Henry Liddell (c. 1495-1567), an English nobleman and landowner who served as the Sheriff of Northumberland.
2. Henry George Liddell (1811-1898), an English academic and co-author of the renowned "Liddell and Scott Greek-English Lexicon."
3. Alice Liddell (1852-1934), the inspiration behind Lewis Carroll's fictional character Alice in the classic novel "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland."
4. Eric Liddell (1902-1945), a Scottish Olympic gold medalist and Christian missionary whose life was depicted in the film "Chariots of Fire."
5. James Liddell (1770-1846), a Scottish architect and civil engineer best known for designing the Waterloo Bridge in London.
While the name has historically been more prevalent in northern England and Scotland, individuals bearing the surname Liddell can be found around the world today, reflecting the migration patterns of the past few centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Liddell
Among Census respondents with the surname Liddell, the largest self-reported group is White at 50.4%. The next largest groups are Black (40.6%) and Two or More Races (5.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Liddell 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 Liddell surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White50.4% · 2,433
- Black or African American40.6% · 1,961
- Two or more races5.0% · 242
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 136
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 32
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 22
Timeline
Historical Census data for Liddell
Liddell 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
#6,874
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,892
+313 bearers (+6.8%)
Per 100,000 1.66
Rank movement Down 88 places
2020
#6,719
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,826
-66 bearers (-1.3%)
Per 100,000 1.61
Rank movement Up 155 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,786 | 4,579 | 1.70 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,874 | 4,892 | 1.66 | +313 bearers (+6.8%) | Down 88 places |
| 2020 | #6,719 | 4,826 | 1.61 | -66 bearers (-1.3%) | Up 155 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 Liddell 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 | #6,874 | #6,719 | 2.3% |
| Count | 4,892 | 4,826 | -1.3% |
| Per 100K | 1.66 | 1.61 | -2.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Liddell bearers went from 4,892 to 4,826 (-1.3% change). The surname moved up 155 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,874 to #6,719.
FAQ
Liddell surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Liddell?
Name Census estimates that about 5,534 living Americans carry the surname Liddell. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 61,936 residents.
How common is Liddell?
Liddell ranks #6,719 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.61 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 4,826 people with the surname Liddell. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,534), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.61 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.61 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Liddell.
Has Liddell become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Liddell went from 4,892 recorded bearers to 4,826. That is a decrease of 66 (-1.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #6,874 to #6,719.
What does the Census say about the background of Liddell?
Among Census respondents with the surname Liddell, the largest self-reported group is White at 50.4%. The next largest groups are Black (40.6%) and Two or More Races (5.0%). 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 Liddell in the 2020 Census, accounting for 50.4% (2,433 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Liddell appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (50.4%), Black (40.6%), Two or More Races (5.0%). 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 Liddell (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 Liddell mean?
A Scottish locational surname derived from a place near Jedburgh, from the Old English "hlyde" and "dale" meaning "loud valley." 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 Liddell (1.61 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 people share the surname Liddell?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.