2000
#3,445
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,489
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.52
Uncommon Last name
Luce
Derived from the Latin word "lux," meaning "light," likely referring to a person with a bright or cheerful disposition.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 10,502 Americans carry the last name Luce. That puts it at #3,777 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.06 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 32,637 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Luce 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 Luce with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
11K
1 in 32,637
Census rank
#3,777
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
9.2K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 9,158 bearers of the surname Luce in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.06 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3777th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Luce, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.9%) and Two or More Races (3.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Luce
The surname Luce originated in France and Italy, deriving from the Latin name Lucius, which means "light" or "bright." It was a common Roman name that evolved over time.
In France, the name traces back to the Middle Ages, with early records showing variations like Luc, Luce, and Lus in regions like Normandy and Brittany. It was also found in medieval Italian records, often rendered as Luce or Luchi.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Guillaume Luce, a Norman nobleman recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086, indicating the name's presence in England following the Norman Conquest.
During the 12th century, a notable figure named Robertus Luce was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire, England. In Italy, the Luce family was prominent in Florence, with several members holding influential positions in the city's government and religious institutions.
Among the famous historical figures with the surname Luce were Giovanni Luce (1460-1510), an Italian Renaissance painter known for his altarpieces and frescoes, and Maximilian Luce (1858-1941), a French Neo-Impressionist painter celebrated for his depictions of urban life and labor scenes.
In England, Sir William Luce (1590-1668) was a prominent lawyer and politician who served as a Member of Parliament during the English Civil War. Another notable bearer was Henry Robinson Luce (1898-1967), the American publisher who co-founded Time, Life, and Fortune magazines.
The name Luce was also found in various place names across Europe, such as Lucé in France, Luce in Italy, and Luce Bay in Scotland, reflecting the widespread distribution of the surname over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Luce
Among Census respondents with the surname Luce, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.9%) and Two or More Races (3.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Luce 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 Luce surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.9% · 8,234
- Hispanic or Latino3.9% · 358
- Two or more races3.8% · 350
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.2% · 109
- Black or African American0.7% · 64
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 43
Timeline
Historical Census data for Luce
Luce 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
#3,672
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,704
+215 bearers (+2.3%)
Per 100,000 3.29
Rank movement Down 227 places
2020
#3,777
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,158
-546 bearers (-5.6%)
Per 100,000 3.06
Rank movement Down 105 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,445 | 9,489 | 3.52 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,672 | 9,704 | 3.29 | +215 bearers (+2.3%) | Down 227 places |
| 2020 | #3,777 | 9,158 | 3.06 | -546 bearers (-5.6%) | Down 105 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 Luce 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 | #3,672 | #3,777 | -2.9% |
| Count | 9,704 | 9,158 | -5.6% |
| Per 100K | 3.29 | 3.06 | -6.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Luce bearers went from 9,704 to 9,158 (-5.6% change). The surname moved down 105 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,672 to #3,777.
FAQ
Luce surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Luce?
Name Census estimates that about 10,502 living Americans carry the surname Luce. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 32,637 residents.
How common is Luce?
Luce ranks #3,777 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.06 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 9,158 people with the surname Luce. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (10,502), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.06 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.06 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Luce.
Has Luce become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Luce went from 9,704 recorded bearers to 9,158. That is a decrease of 546 (-5.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,672 to #3,777.
What does the Census say about the background of Luce?
Among Census respondents with the surname Luce, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.9%) and Two or More Races (3.8%). 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 Luce in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.9% (8,234 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Luce appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.9%), Hispanic (3.9%), Two or More Races (3.8%). 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 Luce (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 Luce mean?
Derived from the Latin word "lux," meaning "light," likely referring to a person with a bright or cheerful disposition. 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 Luce (3.06 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 Luce?
Want to know how common the surname Luce is? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.