2000
#8,326
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,658
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.36
Rare Last name
Lorenzen
A Danish and North German habitational surname derived from place names meaning "Laurence's village."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,000 Americans carry the last name Lorenzen. That puts it at #8,999 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.17 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 85,689 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Lorenzen 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
4.0K
1 in 85,689
Census rank
#8,999
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,488 bearers of the surname Lorenzen in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.17 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8999th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Lorenzen, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.7%) and Two or More Races (2.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Lorenzen
The surname Lorenzen is of German origin and dates back to the 16th century. It is derived from the German personal name Lorenz, which is a variation of the Roman name Laurentius, meaning "from Laurentum." Laurentum was an ancient town located near the mouth of the Tiber River in Italy.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname Lorenzen can be found in various German church records and civil registrations from the late 16th and early 17th centuries. These records often show variations in spelling, such as Lorentzen, Lorentzsen, and Lorenssen.
In the Middle Ages, the name Lorenzen was often associated with individuals hailing from the town of Lorenz or Laurenz, which was located in the region of Saxony-Anhalt in modern-day Germany. This area was known for its thriving textile industry, and it is likely that some early bearers of the surname were involved in this trade.
One of the earliest documented individuals with the surname Lorenzen was Hans Lorenzen, a merchant who lived in the city of Hamburg in the late 16th century. Another notable figure was Johann Lorenzen, a Lutheran clergyman born in 1622 in the town of Goslar, Lower Saxony.
During the 18th and 19th centuries, several notable individuals carried the Lorenzen surname. These include Christian Lorenzen (1749-1828), a German philosopher and theologian, and Johann Lorenzen (1777-1828), a Danish naval officer who played a crucial role in the Gunboat War against the British.
In the 20th century, one of the most prominent individuals with the surname Lorenzen was Paul Lorenzen (1915-1994), a German logician and philosopher who made significant contributions to the field of constructive mathematics.
Another notable figure was Peder Lorenzen (1899-1990), a Danish architect and urban planner who was responsible for designing several notable buildings in Copenhagen, including the iconic Copenhagen Airport Terminal.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lorenzen
Among Census respondents with the surname Lorenzen, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.7%) and Two or More Races (2.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Lorenzen 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 Lorenzen surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.6% · 3,265
- Hispanic or Latino2.7% · 94
- Two or more races2.4% · 83
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 22
- Black or African American0.4% · 14
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Lorenzen
Lorenzen 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
#8,784
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,733
+75 bearers (+2.1%)
Per 100,000 1.27
Rank movement Down 458 places
2020
#8,999
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,488
-245 bearers (-6.6%)
Per 100,000 1.17
Rank movement Down 215 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,326 | 3,658 | 1.36 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,784 | 3,733 | 1.27 | +75 bearers (+2.1%) | Down 458 places |
| 2020 | #8,999 | 3,488 | 1.17 | -245 bearers (-6.6%) | Down 215 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 Lorenzen 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 | #8,784 | #8,999 | -2.4% |
| Count | 3,733 | 3,488 | -6.6% |
| Per 100K | 1.27 | 1.17 | -8.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Lorenzen bearers went from 3,733 to 3,488 (-6.6% change). The surname moved down 215 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,784 to #8,999.
FAQ
Lorenzen surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Lorenzen?
Name Census estimates that about 4,000 living Americans carry the surname Lorenzen. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 85,689 residents.
How common is Lorenzen?
Lorenzen ranks #8,999 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.17 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 3,488 people with the surname Lorenzen. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,000), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.17 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.17 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 Lorenzen.
Has Lorenzen become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Lorenzen went from 3,733 recorded bearers to 3,488. That is a decrease of 245 (-6.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,784 to #8,999.
What does the Census say about the background of Lorenzen?
Among Census respondents with the surname Lorenzen, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.7%) and Two or More Races (2.4%). 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 Lorenzen in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.6% (3,265 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Lorenzen appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.6%), Hispanic (2.7%), Two or More Races (2.4%). 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 Lorenzen (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 Lorenzen mean?
A Danish and North German habitational surname derived from place names meaning "Laurence's village." 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 Lorenzen (1.17 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 common is the surname Lorenzen?
If you just want to know how many people have the last name Lorenzen, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.