2000
#8,544
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,550
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.32
Rare Last name
Louden
Scottish and northern Irish: habitational name from Loudoun near Kilmarnock in Ayrshire, named in Gaelic as loch duin 'lake fort'.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,918 Americans carry the last name Louden. That puts it at #9,172 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.14 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 87,482 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Louden 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 Louden with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.9K
1 in 87,482
Census rank
#9,172
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,417 bearers of the surname Louden in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.14 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9172nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Louden, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.2%. The next largest groups are Black (16.4%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Louden
The surname Louden is of Scottish origin and dates back to the 12th century. It is a locational name derived from the lands of Loudoun in Ayrshire, Scotland. The name is thought to come from the Gaelic words 'luth' meaning 'burnt' and 'dun' meaning 'hill' or 'fort', referring to a burnt or scorched hill.
The earliest recorded spelling of the name is found in the 'Ragman Rolls' of 1296, which list the names of Scottish landowners who swore allegiance to King Edward I of England. One entry reads 'Constantyn de Louedone'. Other early spellings include Lowedane, Lowdane, and Lowden.
The Loudens were a prominent family in Ayrshire and held the lands of Loudoun for several centuries. In 1662, Sir John Louden was created Earl of Loudoun by King Charles II. His descendant, John Campbell, 4th Earl of Loudoun (1705-1782), was a British army officer who served in the French and Indian War and the American Revolutionary War.
Another notable bearer of the name was Thomas Louden (1720-1786), a Scottish-born merchant and landowner who settled in Virginia in the mid-18th century. His grandson, Samuel Louden (1786-1866), was a prominent lawyer and politician who served as a United States Representative from Virginia.
In the 17th century, the name also spread to Ireland, where it is sometimes spelled Lowden or Lowtin. One of the earliest recorded instances is that of Robert Louden, who was born in County Down, Ireland, around 1620.
Other notable individuals with the surname include:
1. James Louden (1786-1861), a Scottish-American educator and author, born in Ayrshire.
2. William Louden (1801-1879), a Scottish-American landscape architect and horticulturist, author of works on gardening and rural architecture.
3. Mary Louden (1827-1904), an American educator and activist, founder of the Louden Institute in Tennessee.
4. John Louden (1876-1957), a Scottish-born American engineer and inventor, known for his contributions to the design of cranes and hoisting equipment.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Louden
Among Census respondents with the surname Louden, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.2%. The next largest groups are Black (16.4%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Louden 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 Louden surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White75.2% · 2,568
- Black or African American16.4% · 562
- Two or more races4.4% · 149
- Hispanic or Latino2.7% · 93
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.1% · 37
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Louden
Louden 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
#8,536
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,855
+305 bearers (+8.6%)
Per 100,000 1.31
Rank movement Up 8 places
2020
#9,172
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,417
-438 bearers (-11.4%)
Per 100,000 1.14
Rank movement Down 636 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,544 | 3,550 | 1.32 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,536 | 3,855 | 1.31 | +305 bearers (+8.6%) | Up 8 places |
| 2020 | #9,172 | 3,417 | 1.14 | -438 bearers (-11.4%) | Down 636 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 Louden 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 | #8,536 | #9,172 | -7.5% |
| Count | 3,855 | 3,417 | -11.4% |
| Per 100K | 1.31 | 1.14 | -12.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Louden bearers went from 3,855 to 3,417 (-11.4% change). The surname moved down 636 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,536 to #9,172.
FAQ
Louden surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Louden?
Name Census estimates that about 3,918 living Americans carry the surname Louden. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 87,482 residents.
How common is Louden?
Louden ranks #9,172 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.14 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 3,417 people with the surname Louden. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,918), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.14 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.14 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 Louden.
Has Louden become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Louden went from 3,855 recorded bearers to 3,417. That is a decrease of 438 (-11.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,536 to #9,172.
What does the Census say about the background of Louden?
Among Census respondents with the surname Louden, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.2%. The next largest groups are Black (16.4%) and Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Louden in the 2020 Census, accounting for 75.2% (2,568 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Louden appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (75.2%), Black (16.4%), Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Louden (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 Louden mean?
Scottish and northern Irish: habitational name from Loudoun near Kilmarnock in Ayrshire, named in Gaelic as loch duin 'lake fort'. 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 Louden (1.14 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 are called Louden?
You can see how many people have the last name Louden on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.