2000
#138,741
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Liebenguth
A German surname meaning "good benevolence" or "good compassion."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 126 Americans carry the last name Liebenguth. That puts it at #149,446 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,720,273 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Liebenguth 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
126
1 in 2,720,273
Census rank
#149,446
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
110
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 110 bearers of the surname Liebenguth in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 149446th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Liebenguth, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (10.0%) and Two or More Races (6.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Liebenguth
The surname Liebenguth has its origins in Germany, with the earliest known references dating back to the 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the German words "liebe" meaning "love" and "gut" meaning "good" or "property," suggesting that the name may have originally referred to a kind or charitable landowner.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Liebenguth can be found in the town records of Nuremberg in 1568, where a Johann Liebenguth is mentioned as a respected citizen. The name also appears in various church registers and legal documents from the 16th and 17th centuries in the regions of Bavaria and Saxony.
In the 18th century, the Liebenguth family became prominent in the city of Leipzig, where they were involved in the textile trade. Johann Friedrich Liebenguth (1720-1798), a successful merchant, was a notable figure in the city's guilds and contributed to the construction of several public buildings.
During the 19th century, the name Liebenguth began to spread beyond Germany as members of the family emigrated to other parts of Europe and the Americas. In 1842, a Heinrich Liebenguth settled in the town of Bluffton, Ohio, where he established a successful farm and became a respected member of the local community.
One of the most famous individuals with the surname Liebenguth was Carl Liebenguth (1844-1914), a German painter known for his landscapes and genre scenes. His works were exhibited in major galleries across Europe and are now held in several prestigious collections.
Other notable individuals with the surname Liebenguth include:
1. Friedrich Liebenguth (1789-1862), a German theologian and philosopher who wrote extensively on the relationship between religion and science.
2. Amalie Liebenguth (1811-1891), a German educator and advocate for women's rights, who founded one of the first girls' schools in Berlin.
3. Wilhelm Liebenguth (1868-1939), a German architect responsible for the design of several iconic buildings in Leipzig and Dresden.
4. Elise Liebenguth (1892-1976), a German-American chemist who made significant contributions to the development of synthetic rubber during World War II.
5. Kurt Liebenguth (1920-2005), a German-born artist known for his abstract expressionist paintings, who spent much of his career in New York City.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Liebenguth
Among Census respondents with the surname Liebenguth, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (10.0%) and Two or More Races (6.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Liebenguth 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 Liebenguth surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White79.1% · 87
- Hispanic or Latino10.0% · 11
- Two or more races6.4% · 7
- Black or African American2.7% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.8% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Liebenguth
Liebenguth 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
#159,712
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 101
-10 bearers (-9.0%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 20,971 places
2020
#149,446
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
+9 bearers (+8.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 10,266 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #138,741 | 111 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #159,712 | 101 | 0.03 | -10 bearers (-9.0%) | Down 20,971 places |
| 2020 | #149,446 | 110 | 0.04 | +9 bearers (+8.9%) | Up 10,266 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 Liebenguth 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 | #159,712 | #149,446 | 6.4% |
| Count | 101 | 110 | 8.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.04 | 22.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Liebenguth bearers went from 101 to 110 (+8.9% change). The surname moved up 10,266 positions in the national ranking, going from #159,712 to #149,446.
FAQ
Liebenguth surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Liebenguth?
Name Census estimates that about 126 living Americans carry the surname Liebenguth. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,720,273 residents.
How common is Liebenguth?
Liebenguth ranks #149,446 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 110 people with the surname Liebenguth. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (126), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Liebenguth.
Has Liebenguth become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Liebenguth went from 101 recorded bearers to 110. That is an increase of 9 (+8.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #159,712 to #149,446.
What does the Census say about the background of Liebenguth?
Among Census respondents with the surname Liebenguth, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (10.0%) and Two or More Races (6.4%). 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 Liebenguth in the 2020 Census, accounting for 79.1% (87 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Liebenguth appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (79.1%), Hispanic (10.0%), Two or More Races (6.4%). 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 Liebenguth (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 Liebenguth mean?
A German surname meaning "good benevolence" or "good compassion." 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 Liebenguth (0.04 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 have the last name Liebenguth?
Find out how many Americans have the surname Liebenguth on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.