2000
#11,496
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,512
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.93
Rare Last name
Lustig
A German and Jewish surname meaning "funny" or "amusing," referring to a person with a cheerful disposition.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,788 Americans carry the last name Lustig. That puts it at #12,221 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.81 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 122,939 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Lustig 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
2.8K
1 in 122,939
Census rank
#12,221
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,431 bearers of the surname Lustig in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.81 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12221st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Lustig, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.3%) and Two or More Races (2.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Lustig
The surname Lustig originated in Germany in the late Middle Ages, emerging around the 13th or 14th century. It is derived from the Middle High German word "lustic," meaning "pleasant" or "cheerful." This suggests that the name may have been initially given as a descriptive nickname to someone with a jovial or merry disposition.
The earliest recorded instances of the name Lustig can be found in various German records and documents from the 14th and 15th centuries. For example, a Johann Lustig is mentioned in a 1468 registry from the town of Erfurt in Thuringia. Another early reference is to a Claus Lustig, who appears in a 1492 tax record from Nuremberg.
In some regions, the name may have evolved from or been influenced by similar-sounding place names, such as the town of Lustnau in Baden-Württemberg or the village of Lüstnitz in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. However, the direct connection between the surname and these place names is not entirely clear.
Over the centuries, the name Lustig has been borne by several notable individuals, including Johann Lustig (1615-1682), a German composer and organist who served at the court of the Dukes of Saxe-Weissenfels. Another was Johann Lustig (1722-1780), a German Protestant theologian and author.
In the 19th century, Anton Lustig (1786-1859) was an Austrian operatic tenor who performed at the Kärntnertortheater in Vienna. Around the same time, Rudolf Lustig (1841-1888) was a German architect and engineer who designed several notable buildings in Berlin, including the Reichsbank and the Börse.
One of the most famous bearers of the name was Arnošt Lustig (1926-2011), a renowned Czech writer and Holocaust survivor whose works explored the experiences of Jews during World War II. His notable novels include "Night and Hope" and "Dita Saxová."
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lustig
Among Census respondents with the surname Lustig, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.3%) and Two or More Races (2.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Lustig 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 Lustig surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.0% · 2,261
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 80
- Two or more races2.0% · 48
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.2% · 30
- Black or African American0.2% · 6
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 6
Timeline
Historical Census data for Lustig
Lustig 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
#12,164
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,562
+50 bearers (+2.0%)
Per 100,000 0.87
Rank movement Down 668 places
2020
#12,221
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,431
-131 bearers (-5.1%)
Per 100,000 0.81
Rank movement Down 57 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,496 | 2,512 | 0.93 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,164 | 2,562 | 0.87 | +50 bearers (+2.0%) | Down 668 places |
| 2020 | #12,221 | 2,431 | 0.81 | -131 bearers (-5.1%) | Down 57 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 Lustig 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 | #12,164 | #12,221 | -0.5% |
| Count | 2,562 | 2,431 | -5.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.87 | 0.81 | -6.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Lustig bearers went from 2,562 to 2,431 (-5.1% change). The surname moved down 57 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,164 to #12,221.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Lustig
FAQ
Lustig surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Lustig?
Name Census estimates that about 2,788 living Americans carry the surname Lustig. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 122,939 residents.
How common is Lustig?
Lustig ranks #12,221 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.81 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 2,431 people with the surname Lustig. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,788), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.81 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.81 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 Lustig.
Has Lustig become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Lustig went from 2,562 recorded bearers to 2,431. That is a decrease of 131 (-5.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #12,164 to #12,221.
What does the Census say about the background of Lustig?
Among Census respondents with the surname Lustig, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.3%) and Two or More Races (2.0%). 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 Lustig in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.0% (2,261 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Lustig appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.0%), Hispanic (3.3%), Two or More Races (2.0%). 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 Lustig (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 Lustig mean?
A German and Jewish surname meaning "funny" or "amusing," referring to a person with a 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 Lustig (0.81 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 surname Lustig?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.