How common is the surname Lau?

29,792 people in the United States had the surname Lau in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 10,363 Americans. It ranked 1,187th of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named Lau?

Wesley Lau, American actor (1921-1984).

Where is the surname Lau most common?

Wikidata records people named Lau in the United States.

Is the surname Lau getting more or less common?

More common. 25,624 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 29,792 in 2010, up 16%.

The surname Lau

A Chinese surname, carried by 29,792 people in the United States.

Pronounced /laʊ/ 1 syllable Soundex L000

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Lau is more common than 99.3% of them.

Origin

Chinese origin

From Cantonese 劉／刘 (lau4), Hokkien 劉／刘 (Lâu) or Teochew 劉／刘 (lao5). Doublet of Liu and Luu.

One of 193 Chinese surnames on this site.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 29,792 people named Lau in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 10,363 Americans. That is up 16% since 2000, when the Census counted 25,624.

#1,187

rank among US surnames

29,792

people in 2010

per 100,000 Americans

+16.3%

change since 2000 (was #1,259)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#1,178	Richter	29,880	10,333
#1,179	Farris	29,877	10,334
#1,180	Tracy	29,867	10,337
#1,181	Bacon	29,860	10,340
#1,182	Han	29,847	10,344
#1,183	Gibbons	29,824	10,352
#1,184	Mayfield	29,805	10,359

Who is named Lau

Race and Hispanic origin as people reported it in the 2010 Census

76% of people named Lau identified as Asian and Pacific Islander, 16% as white (not Hispanic) and 3.9% as two or more races.

Asian and Pacific Islander 76%
White (not Hispanic) 16%
Two or more races 3.9%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 3.5%
Black (not Hispanic) 0.2%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.1%

Compare: most common surnames among Asian and Pacific Islander Americans.

Famous Laus

1 notable person on Wikidata, most written-about first

Wesley Lau
American actor (1921-1984)

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Surnames that sound like Lau

Lau has the Soundex code L000, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code L000.

Other Chinese surnames

All 193 Chinese surnames

Questions

Where does the surname Lau come from?: From Cantonese 劉／刘 (lau4), Hokkien 劉／刘 (Lâu) or Teochew 劉／刘 (lao5). Doublet of Liu and Luu.
How common is the surname Lau?: 29,792 people in the United States had the surname Lau in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 10,363 Americans. It ranked 1,187th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Lau?: In the 2010 Census, 76% of people named Lau identified as Asian and Pacific Islander, and 16% as white (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named Lau?: Wesley Lau, American actor (1921-1984).
Where is the surname Lau most common?: Wikidata records people named Lau in the United States.
How do you pronounce Lau?: Lau is /laʊ/, one syllable.
Is the surname Lau getting more or less common?: More common. 25,624 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 29,792 in 2010, up 16%.