2000
#12,088
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,368
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.88
Rare Last name
Loch
A Scottish topographic surname referring to someone who lived near a lake, pond, or partially landlocked body of water.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,748 Americans carry the last name Loch. That puts it at #12,379 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.80 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 124,729 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Loch 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 Loch with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.7K
1 in 124,729
Census rank
#12,379
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,396 bearers of the surname Loch in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.80 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12379th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Loch, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.1%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (7.3%) and Hispanic (3.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Loch
The surname Loch has its origins in Scotland, where it first emerged in the 13th century. It is derived from the Gaelic word "loch," which means lake or body of water. This suggests that the name initially belonged to someone who lived near a loch or body of water.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Loch can be found in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which were a series of official records that documented the submission of Scottish nobles to King Edward I of England. In these rolls, the name appears as "de Loch," indicating that the bearer lived near a loch.
During the Middle Ages, the name Loch was particularly prevalent in the Highlands of Scotland, where lochs and bodies of water were abundant. It was often associated with specific place names, such as Lochleven or Lochgelly, where the families bearing the name lived or held land.
In the 16th century, a notable bearer of the surname Loch was James Loch (1505-1568), a Scottish Protestant reformer and minister. He played a significant role in the spread of Protestantism in Scotland during the Reformation era.
Another prominent figure with the surname Loch was Sir Henry Brougham Loch (1827-1900), a British colonial administrator who served as Governor of Victoria, Australia, and High Commissioner of the Cape Colony in South Africa.
In the literary world, the name Loch is associated with Mary Loch (1879-1928), a Scottish writer and novelist known for her works set in the Scottish Highlands and Islands. Her novels, such as "The Piper's Tune" and "The House by the Loch," captured the essence of rural Scottish life.
The surname Loch also has connections to the world of academia and science. One notable figure is David Loch (1770-1838), a Scottish mathematician and astronomer who made significant contributions to the study of celestial mechanics and the calculation of planetary orbits.
Another bearer of the name Loch was Sir Charles William Loch (1849-1923), a British diplomat and colonial administrator who served as the Governor of Cape Colony and High Commissioner for Southern Africa. He played a crucial role in the governance of British territories in Africa during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
While the surname Loch has its roots in Scotland, it has since spread to other parts of the world, particularly through Scottish emigration and the expansion of the British Empire. However, its origins can be traced back to the picturesque lochs and bodies of water that dot the Scottish landscape, reflecting the connection between this name and the geography of its homeland.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Loch
Among Census respondents with the surname Loch, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.1%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (7.3%) and Hispanic (3.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Loch 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 Loch surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White86.1% · 2,062
- Asian and Pacific Islander7.3% · 175
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 79
- Two or more races2.4% · 58
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 12
- Black or African American0.4% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Loch
Loch 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
#12,496
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,481
+113 bearers (+4.8%)
Per 100,000 0.84
Rank movement Down 408 places
2020
#12,379
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,396
-85 bearers (-3.4%)
Per 100,000 0.80
Rank movement Up 117 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,088 | 2,368 | 0.88 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,496 | 2,481 | 0.84 | +113 bearers (+4.8%) | Down 408 places |
| 2020 | #12,379 | 2,396 | 0.80 | -85 bearers (-3.4%) | Up 117 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 Loch 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 | #12,496 | #12,379 | 0.9% |
| Count | 2,481 | 2,396 | -3.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.84 | 0.80 | -4.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Loch bearers went from 2,481 to 2,396 (-3.4% change). The surname moved up 117 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,496 to #12,379.
FAQ
Loch surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Loch?
Name Census estimates that about 2,748 living Americans carry the surname Loch. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 124,729 residents.
How common is Loch?
Loch ranks #12,379 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.80 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 2,396 people with the surname Loch. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,748), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.8 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.80 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 Loch.
Has Loch become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Loch went from 2,481 recorded bearers to 2,396. That is a decrease of 85 (-3.4%). In the national ranking it rose from #12,496 to #12,379.
What does the Census say about the background of Loch?
Among Census respondents with the surname Loch, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.1%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (7.3%) and Hispanic (3.3%). 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 Loch in the 2020 Census, accounting for 86.1% (2,062 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Loch appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (86.1%), Asian/Pacific Islander (7.3%), Hispanic (3.3%). 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 Loch (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 Loch mean?
A Scottish topographic surname referring to someone who lived near a lake, pond, or partially landlocked body of water. 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 Loch (0.80 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 Americans have the surname Loch?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.