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

Loeffler, 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 Loeffler surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Loeffler in America

Loeffler is the 5935th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Loeffler surname appeared 5,801 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Loeffler.

We can also compare 2010 data for Loeffler 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.

The history of the last name Loeffler

The surname Loeffler originated in Germany, specifically in the regions of Bavaria and Saxony, during the late medieval period around the 13th or 14th century. It is derived from the German word "Löffel," which means "spoon," and may have been an occupational name for a maker or seller of spoons, or perhaps even a nickname for someone who had a particular fondness or association with spoons.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Loeffler can be found in the town records of Nuremberg, dating back to 1389, where a certain Hans Loeffler is mentioned as a resident. In the 15th century, the name appears in various other German records, including those of Augsburg and Leipzig, suggesting its spread across different regions.

The Loeffler family name has also been associated with several notable figures throughout history. One of the most prominent was Johann Loeffler, a German baroque composer who lived from 1615 to 1679 and served as the Kapellmeister (music director) at the court of the Elector of Saxony in Dresden. His compositions, including sacred works and instrumental pieces, were highly regarded during his time.

Another notable Loeffler was Friedrich Loeffler, a German-American bacteriologist and pioneer in the field of microbiology, who was born in 1852 and died in 1915. He made significant contributions to the study of various infectious diseases, including diphtheria and glanders, and helped develop methods for isolating and identifying pathogenic bacteria.

In the literary world, the name Loeffler is associated with Siegfried Loeffler, a German poet and writer who lived from 1915 to 2004. He was known for his lyrical works and was awarded several prestigious literary prizes, including the Georg Büchner Prize in 1965.

Another notable figure is Rolf Loeffler, a German soccer player and manager who was born in 1945. He played as a defender for several Bundesliga clubs, including Borussia Mönchengladbach and Eintracht Frankfurt, and later went on to manage teams like Karlsruher SC and VfB Stuttgart.

Lastly, the name Loeffler has also been associated with places and locations in Germany. For instance, there is a town called Löffler in the state of Saxony-Anhalt, which may have derived its name from the Loeffler family or their occupation as spoon makers or sellers in that region.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Loeffler

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

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 Loeffler was:

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

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

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

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