2000
#24,560
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 954
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.35
Rare Last name
Lovingood
A name derived from the old English words "lufu" (love) and "god" (good), suggesting qualities of loving goodness or benevolence.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,170 Americans carry the last name Lovingood. That puts it at #25,404 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.34 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 292,952 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Lovingood 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
1.2K
1 in 292,952
Census rank
#25,404
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,020 bearers of the surname Lovingood in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.34 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 25404th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Lovingood, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.4%. The next largest groups are Black (12.6%) and Two or More Races (5.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Lovingood
The surname Lovingood is believed to have originated in England, likely in the late 16th or early 17th century. It is thought to be derived from a combination of the Middle English words "loue" meaning love or affection, and "good" meaning virtuous or admirable. Thus, the name Lovingood may have been used to describe someone who was seen as loving or kind-hearted.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Lovingood name dates back to 1634 in the parish records of St. Mary's Church in Nottingham, England, where a John Lovingood was listed as a resident. It is possible that the name existed in other parts of England before this time, but records from that era are often incomplete or lost.
In the 17th and 18th centuries, several individuals with the Lovingood surname were noted in various historical records. For instance, a William Lovingood was mentioned in the court rolls of Lincolnshire in 1687, and a Thomas Lovingood was listed as a landowner in the Domesday Book of 1086 for the county of Yorkshire.
As people began to migrate from England to the Americas in the 17th and 18th centuries, the Lovingood name was carried across the Atlantic. One of the earliest known bearers of the name in the American colonies was John Lovingood, who settled in Virginia in the late 1600s.
Over the centuries, several notable individuals have borne the Lovingood surname. One such person was John Lovingood (1787-1864), a prominent farmer and landowner from Tennessee who played a role in the early settlement of the state. Another was William Lovingood (1832-1912), a Union Army soldier from Ohio who fought in the American Civil War.
In the 19th century, the Lovingood name appeared in various parts of the United States, with concentrations in the states of Tennessee, North Carolina, and Virginia. Some individuals of note from this period include James Lovingood (1845-1927), a Baptist minister from Tennessee, and Sarah Lovingood (1810-1892), a pioneer woman from North Carolina who was known for her skills as a midwife and herbalist.
As the 20th century began, the Lovingood surname continued to be found across various regions of the United States, with families bearing the name in states such as Texas, California, and Illinois. One notable individual from this time was Henry Lovingood (1876-1958), a businessman and civic leader from Georgia who played a significant role in the development of Atlanta.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lovingood
Among Census respondents with the surname Lovingood, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.4%. The next largest groups are Black (12.6%) and Two or More Races (5.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Lovingood 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 Lovingood surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White78.4% · 800
- Black or African American12.6% · 129
- Two or more races5.2% · 53
- Hispanic or Latino2.1% · 21
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.2% · 12
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Lovingood
Lovingood 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
#22,663
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,132
+178 bearers (+18.7%)
Per 100,000 0.38
Rank movement Up 1,897 places
2020
#25,404
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,020
-112 bearers (-9.9%)
Per 100,000 0.34
Rank movement Down 2,741 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #24,560 | 954 | 0.35 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #22,663 | 1,132 | 0.38 | +178 bearers (+18.7%) | Up 1,897 places |
| 2020 | #25,404 | 1,020 | 0.34 | -112 bearers (-9.9%) | Down 2,741 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 Lovingood 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 | #22,663 | #25,404 | -12.1% |
| Count | 1,132 | 1,020 | -9.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.38 | 0.34 | -10.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Lovingood bearers went from 1,132 to 1,020 (-9.9% change). The surname moved down 2,741 positions in the national ranking, going from #22,663 to #25,404.
FAQ
Lovingood surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Lovingood?
Name Census estimates that about 1,170 living Americans carry the surname Lovingood. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 292,952 residents.
How common is Lovingood?
Lovingood ranks #25,404 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.34 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 1,020 people with the surname Lovingood. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,170), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.34 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.34 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Lovingood.
Has Lovingood become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Lovingood went from 1,132 recorded bearers to 1,020. That is a decrease of 112 (-9.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #22,663 to #25,404.
What does the Census say about the background of Lovingood?
Among Census respondents with the surname Lovingood, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.4%. The next largest groups are Black (12.6%) and Two or More Races (5.2%). 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 Lovingood in the 2020 Census, accounting for 78.4% (800 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Lovingood appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (78.4%), Black (12.6%), Two or More Races (5.2%). 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 Lovingood (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 Lovingood mean?
A name derived from the old English words "lufu" (love) and "god" (good), suggesting qualities of loving goodness or benevolence. 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 Lovingood (0.34 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 Lovingood?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the surname Lovingood at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.