Liddle last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Liddle

Derived from a place name meaning "little stream" or from the Old English word "lytel," meaning "little" or "small."

Liddle, 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 Liddle surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Liddle in America

Liddle is the 10683rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Liddle surname appeared 2,992 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 Liddle.

We can also compare 2010 data for Liddle 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 10683 10603 0.75%
Count 2,992 2,774 7.56%
Proportion per 100k 1.01 1.03 -1.96%

The history of the last name Liddle

The surname Liddle originated in England and Scotland during the medieval period. It is derived from the Old English word "lytell" or "lidel," meaning small or little. This name was likely given as a nickname to someone of small stature or as a distinguishing feature.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Liddle can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Lidel" and "Lidela." This indicates that the name was already well-established in various parts of England by the 11th century.

The Liddle family was particularly prominent in Northumberland, where they held lands and estates. In the 13th century, records show a Robert de Lidel who owned property in the village of Liddesdale, which may have influenced the spelling of the surname.

During the 16th century, the name Liddle began to spread across Scotland, particularly in the Borders region. This was likely due to the movement of people between the two countries during times of conflict and unrest.

One notable figure bearing the Liddle surname was William Liddle (c. 1530-1589), a Scottish clergyman and writer who served as the minister of St. Michael's Church in Leith. He was known for his religious works and sermons.

In the 17th century, John Liddle (1624-1703) was a prominent English mathematician and astronomer. He made significant contributions to the study of navigation and published works on spherical trigonometry.

Another individual of note was Robert Liddle (1808-1886), a British engineer and inventor who played a crucial role in the development of early steam engines and railway locomotives.

Mary Liddle (1858-1939), a Scottish suffragette and activist, was a prominent figure in the women's suffrage movement in the early 20th century. She campaigned tirelessly for equal rights and representation for women.

During the 19th and 20th centuries, variations of the surname, such as Liddell and Liddle, continued to appear in various parts of the United Kingdom, with families tracing their ancestry back to different regions and periods.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Liddle

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

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 Liddle was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 94.15% 2,817
Non-Hispanic Black Only 2.14% 64
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 1.54% 46
Hispanic Origin 1.44% 43

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 Liddle has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 94.15% 96.72% -2.69%
Black 2.14% 1.30% 48.84%
Asian and Pacific Islander (S)% 0.40% (S)%
American Indian and Alaskan Native (S)% 0.25% (S)%
Two or More Races 1.54% 0.68% 77.48%
Hispanic 1.44% 0.65% 75.60%

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

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

Reference this page

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If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!

"Liddle last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on October 31, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/liddle-surname-popularity/.

"Liddle last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/liddle-surname-popularity/. Accessed 31 October, 2024

Liddle last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/liddle-surname-popularity/.

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