2000
#13,082
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,145
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.80
Rare Last name
Luc
A French occupational surname referring to a light-bearer or one who lives near a grove.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,324 Americans carry the last name Luc. That puts it at #10,554 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.97 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 103,115 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Luc 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 Luc with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.3K
1 in 103,115
Census rank
#10,554
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,899 bearers of the surname Luc in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.97 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10554th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Luc, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 62.0%. The next largest groups are Black (20.4%) and White (11.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Luc
The surname Luc originated in France and can be traced back to the 12th century. It is derived from the Latin name Lucas, which means "from Lucania," a region in southern Italy. The name likely spread to other parts of Europe during the Middle Ages.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Luc appears in the cartulary of the Abbey of Saint-Père de Chartres in 1154, where a certain Robertus Luc is mentioned as a witness to a land transaction. Another early reference is found in the Pipe Rolls of Normandy from 1180, which lists a Radulfus Luc among the landowners in the region.
In England, the name Luc is thought to have been introduced by Norman settlers after the conquest of 1066. The Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of landowners commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086, does not contain any instances of the name Luc, suggesting that it was not yet widely established in England at that time.
One of the earliest known bearers of the Luc surname in England was William Luc, a merchant from Bordeaux who settled in London in the early 13th century. Another notable figure was Sir John Luc (c. 1300-1370), a knight who fought in the Hundred Years' War and was granted lands in Kent for his service to King Edward III.
During the Renaissance, the Luc family produced several notable scholars and artists. Jean Luc (1506-1573) was a French humanist and philosopher who taught at the University of Paris and was a friend of Erasmus. His nephew, Olivier Luc (1538-1599), was a renowned painter and engraver who worked in the court of Henry IV of France.
In the 17th century, the name Luc gained prominence in the Netherlands with the birth of Jan Luc (1616-1663), a celebrated Dutch still-life painter. His son, Jan Luc the Younger (1649-1712), followed in his footsteps and became a respected artist in his own right.
Other notable bearers of the Luc surname include Louis-Joseph Luc (1757-1820), a French military officer who served under Napoleon, and Charles Luc (1848-1914), a Belgian engineer and inventor who pioneered the use of reinforced concrete in construction.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Luc
Among Census respondents with the surname Luc, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 62.0%. The next largest groups are Black (20.4%) and White (11.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Luc 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 Luc surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander62.0% · 1,796
- Black or African American20.4% · 592
- White11.3% · 327
- Hispanic or Latino4.1% · 120
- Two or more races2.1% · 61
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Luc
Luc 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
#11,877
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,636
+491 bearers (+22.9%)
Per 100,000 0.89
Rank movement Up 1,205 places
2020
#10,554
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,899
+263 bearers (+10.0%)
Per 100,000 0.97
Rank movement Up 1,323 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,082 | 2,145 | 0.80 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,877 | 2,636 | 0.89 | +491 bearers (+22.9%) | Up 1,205 places |
| 2020 | #10,554 | 2,899 | 0.97 | +263 bearers (+10.0%) | Up 1,323 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 Luc 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 | #11,877 | #10,554 | 11.1% |
| Count | 2,636 | 2,899 | 10.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.89 | 0.97 | 9.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Luc bearers went from 2,636 to 2,899 (+10.0% change). The surname moved up 1,323 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,877 to #10,554.
FAQ
Luc surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Luc?
Name Census estimates that about 3,324 living Americans carry the surname Luc. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 103,115 residents.
How common is Luc?
Luc ranks #10,554 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.97 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 2,899 people with the surname Luc. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,324), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.97 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.97 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 Luc.
Has Luc become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Luc went from 2,636 recorded bearers to 2,899. That is an increase of 263 (+10.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #11,877 to #10,554.
What does the Census say about the background of Luc?
Among Census respondents with the surname Luc, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 62.0%. The next largest groups are Black (20.4%) and White (11.3%). 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?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest self-reported group for the surname Luc in the 2020 Census, accounting for 62.0% (1,796 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Luc appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (62.0%), Black (20.4%), White (11.3%). 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 Luc (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 Luc mean?
A French occupational surname referring to a light-bearer or one who lives near a grove. 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 Luc (0.97 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 Americans have the surname Luc?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.