2000
#127,948
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 123
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Luedloff
A German topographic name for someone from a place named with the element "lud," meaning "loud" or "noisy."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 128 Americans carry the last name Luedloff. That puts it at #147,954 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,677,768 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Luedloff 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
128
1 in 2,677,768
Census rank
#147,954
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
112
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 112 bearers of the surname Luedloff in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 147954th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Luedloff, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.7%) and Black (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Luedloff
The surname LUEDLOFF is of German origin and can be traced back to the late 15th century. It is believed to have originated from the region of Saxony in eastern Germany, where it was likely derived from the German words "lüde" meaning "people" and "loff" meaning "praise" or "honor." This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who was highly regarded or respected by the local community.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the LUEDLOFF name can be found in a document from the town of Zwickau in Saxony, dated 1487. This document mentions a Hans Luedloff, who was a local landowner and merchant. Another notable early reference is in the Kirchenbuch (church book) of the town of Eilenburg, where a Margaretha Luedloff is recorded as having been born in 1521.
The LUEDLOFF name has also been associated with certain place names in Saxony, such as Lüdloff and Lüdloffshain, which may have been derived from the surname or vice versa. These place names likely refer to settlements or areas where families with the LUEDLOFF name resided or had significant influence.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, several individuals with the LUEDLOFF surname made notable contributions in various fields. Johann Christoph Luedloff (1669-1739) was a German theologian and author who wrote extensively on religious topics. His son, Johann Georg Luedloff (1707-1780), followed in his footsteps and became a respected Lutheran clergyman and university professor.
In the world of art, Carl Friedrich Luedloff (1770-1845) was a renowned German painter known for his landscape and genre scenes. His works can be found in several prominent museums across Europe. Another notable figure was Friedrich August Luedloff (1835-1912), a German engineer and inventor who made significant contributions to the development of early telegraph systems.
The LUEDLOFF name also gained prominence in the field of literature with the German poet and writer Emil Luedloff (1834-1904). He is best known for his collection of poetry titled "Gedichte" (Poems), which was published in 1883 and received critical acclaim.
While the LUEDLOFF surname may have evolved over time and spread to other regions, its roots can be traced back to the historical region of Saxony in Germany, where it emerged as a name associated with respect, honor, and local significance during the late medieval and early modern periods.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Luedloff
Among Census respondents with the surname Luedloff, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.7%) and Black (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Luedloff 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 Luedloff surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.8% · 105
- Two or more races2.7% · 3
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
- Hispanic or Latino0.9% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Luedloff
Luedloff 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
#141,140
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 118
-5 bearers (-4.1%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 13,192 places
2020
#147,954
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
-6 bearers (-5.1%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 6,814 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #127,948 | 123 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #141,140 | 118 | 0.04 | -5 bearers (-4.1%) | Down 13,192 places |
| 2020 | #147,954 | 112 | 0.04 | -6 bearers (-5.1%) | Down 6,814 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 Luedloff 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 | #141,140 | #147,954 | -4.8% |
| Count | 118 | 112 | -5.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -6.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Luedloff bearers went from 118 to 112 (-5.1% change). The surname moved down 6,814 positions in the national ranking, going from #141,140 to #147,954.
FAQ
Luedloff surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Luedloff?
Name Census estimates that about 128 living Americans carry the surname Luedloff. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,677,768 residents.
How common is Luedloff?
Luedloff ranks #147,954 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 112 people with the surname Luedloff. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (128), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Luedloff.
Has Luedloff become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Luedloff went from 118 recorded bearers to 112. That is a decrease of 6 (-5.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #141,140 to #147,954.
What does the Census say about the background of Luedloff?
Among Census respondents with the surname Luedloff, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.7%) and Black (0.9%). 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 Luedloff in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.8% (105 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Luedloff appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.8%), Two or More Races (2.7%), Black (0.9%). 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 Luedloff (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 Luedloff mean?
A German topographic name for someone from a place named with the element "lud," meaning "loud" or "noisy." 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 Luedloff (0.04 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 Luedloff?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how common the surname Luedloff is at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.