2000
#12,084
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,369
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.88
Rare Last name
Lovette
A diminutive of the surname Love, derived from the Old English word "lufu," meaning affection or fondness.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,585 Americans carry the last name Lovette. That puts it at #13,021 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.75 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 132,594 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Lovette 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
2.6K
1 in 132,594
Census rank
#13,021
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,254 bearers of the surname Lovette in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.75 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13021st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Lovette, the largest self-reported group is White at 63.2%. The next largest groups are Black (27.8%) and Two or More Races (4.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Lovette
The surname Lovette is believed to have originated in France, with roots dating back to the medieval period. It is thought to be a variant of the French surname Louvette, which itself is a diminutive form of the Old French word "lou," meaning wolf. This suggests that the name may have been initially used as a nickname for someone who exhibited wolf-like characteristics or perhaps lived near a place associated with wolves.
Some of the earliest recorded instances of the Lovette surname can be found in historical documents from the 13th and 14th centuries in various regions of France, particularly in the northern and central parts of the country. Variations in spelling, such as Louvette, Lowette, and Lovett, were common during this time due to inconsistencies in record-keeping and regional dialects.
One notable historical reference to the Lovette name can be found in the Rolls of Parliament from the reign of King Edward III of England, where a certain John Lovette is mentioned as a member of the English gentry in the mid-14th century. This suggests that the surname had already spread beyond France by this point and had established itself in other parts of Europe.
In the 15th century, records show a Jean Lovette who was a prominent merchant and landowner in the city of Lyon, France. Another individual by the name of Pierre Lovette was a soldier who fought in the French Wars of Religion during the late 16th century.
As the centuries progressed, the Lovette surname continued to be represented across various fields and regions. In the 18th century, a notable figure was Jacques Lovette, a French philosopher and writer who was born in 1721 and died in 1801. His works explored themes of enlightenment and social reform.
During the 19th century, a prominent bearer of the Lovette name was Marie-Louise Lovette, a French sculptor and artist who was born in 1825 and died in 1892. Her works were exhibited in several prestigious salons and galleries throughout Europe.
It is important to note that these examples represent only a small fraction of the individuals who have carried the Lovette surname throughout history, and there are likely many more notable figures and interesting stories associated with this name across various cultures and time periods.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lovette
Among Census respondents with the surname Lovette, the largest self-reported group is White at 63.2%. The next largest groups are Black (27.8%) and Two or More Races (4.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Lovette 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 Lovette surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White63.2% · 1,425
- Black or African American27.8% · 627
- Two or more races4.1% · 92
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 75
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 19
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 16
Timeline
Historical Census data for Lovette
Lovette 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
#12,627
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,451
+82 bearers (+3.5%)
Per 100,000 0.83
Rank movement Down 543 places
2020
#13,021
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,254
-197 bearers (-8.0%)
Per 100,000 0.75
Rank movement Down 394 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,084 | 2,369 | 0.88 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,627 | 2,451 | 0.83 | +82 bearers (+3.5%) | Down 543 places |
| 2020 | #13,021 | 2,254 | 0.75 | -197 bearers (-8.0%) | Down 394 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 Lovette 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 | #12,627 | #13,021 | -3.1% |
| Count | 2,451 | 2,254 | -8.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.83 | 0.75 | -9.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Lovette bearers went from 2,451 to 2,254 (-8.0% change). The surname moved down 394 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,627 to #13,021.
FAQ
Lovette surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Lovette?
Name Census estimates that about 2,585 living Americans carry the surname Lovette. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 132,594 residents.
How common is Lovette?
Lovette ranks #13,021 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.75 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 2,254 people with the surname Lovette. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,585), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.75 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.75 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 Lovette.
Has Lovette become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Lovette went from 2,451 recorded bearers to 2,254. That is a decrease of 197 (-8.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #12,627 to #13,021.
What does the Census say about the background of Lovette?
Among Census respondents with the surname Lovette, the largest self-reported group is White at 63.2%. The next largest groups are Black (27.8%) and Two or More Races (4.1%). 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 Lovette in the 2020 Census, accounting for 63.2% (1,425 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Lovette appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (63.2%), Black (27.8%), Two or More Races (4.1%). 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 Lovette (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 Lovette mean?
A diminutive of the surname Love, derived from the Old English word "lufu," meaning affection or fondness. 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 Lovette (0.75 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 Lovette?
Find out how many people have the surname Lovette on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.