How common is the surname Lew?

7,410 people in the United States had the surname Lew in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 41,666 Americans. It ranked 4,775th of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named Lew?

Jack Lew, American lawyer and diplomat, followed by James Lew.

Where is the surname Lew most common?

Wikidata records people named Lew in the United States.

Is the surname Lew getting more or less common?

More common. 7,304 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 7,410 in 2010, up 1.5%.

Is Lew also a first name?

Yes. Lew is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.

The surname Lew

A surname, carried by 7,410 people in the United States.

Pronounced /ljuː/ 1 syllable Soundex L000 Also a first name

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Lew is more common than 97.1% of them.

Origin

A surname.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 7,410 people named Lew in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 41,666 Americans. That is up 1.5% since 2000, when the Census counted 7,304.

#4,775

rank among US surnames

7,410

people in 2010

2.5

per 100,000 Americans

+1.5%

change since 2000 (was #4,464)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#4,766	Yager	7,427	41,571
#4,767	Kuo	7,426	41,576
#4,768	McDevitt	7,425	41,582
#4,769	Carnahan	7,424	41,587
#4,770	Falcone	7,423	41,593
#4,771	Grim	7,418	41,621
#4,772	Ching	7,417	41,627

Who is named Lew

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

72% of people named Lew identified as Asian and Pacific Islander, 19% as white (not Hispanic) and 5.0% as two or more races.

Asian and Pacific Islander 72%
White (not Hispanic) 19%
Two or more races 5.0%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 3.4%
Black (not Hispanic) 1.1%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.1%

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

Famous Lews

3 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

Jack Lew
American lawyer and diplomat, born 1955
James Lew
American actor, 1952–2026
Elizabeth Van Lew
American civil war spy (1818-1900)

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Surnames that sound like Lew

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

Questions

How common is the surname Lew?: 7,410 people in the United States had the surname Lew in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 41,666 Americans. It ranked 4,775th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Lew?: In the 2010 Census, 72% of people named Lew identified as Asian and Pacific Islander, and 19% as white (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named Lew?: Jack Lew, American lawyer and diplomat, followed by James Lew.
Where is the surname Lew most common?: Wikidata records people named Lew in the United States.
How do you pronounce Lew?: Lew is /ljuː/, one syllable.
Is the surname Lew getting more or less common?: More common. 7,304 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 7,410 in 2010, up 1.5%.
Is Lew also a first name?: Yes. Lew is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.