Explore the Family Name Lightning
The meaning of Lightning
English (Norfolk): from the Middle English personal name Lightwin, which is from an unrecorded Old English personal name Lēohtwine ‘bright friend’.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Lightning in the United States?
Based on the Decennial U.S. Census, the popularity of the surname Lightning has seen a slight increase between 2000 and 2010. The ranking improved from 90,652nd to 88,685th, representing a change of 2.17%. Additionally, the count of individuals with this surname also increased by 10.58%, rising from 189 in 2000 to 209 in 2010. Notably, however, the proportion of the surname per 100,000 people remained consistent at 0.07.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #90,652 | #88,685 | 2.17% |
| Count | 189 | 209 | 10.58% |
| Proportion per 100k | 0.07 | 0.07 | 0% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Lightning
The census data also shows a distribution among various ethnic identities for the surname Lightning. As of 2010, the most significant ethnicity associated with the name was Black, constituting 78.95%, up by 1.50% from 2000. White and American Indian and Alaskan Native were the next two most common ethnicities, with the former seeing a small increase (5.51%) and the latter experiencing a decline (-14.60%). There was a slight decrease in the percentage of individuals identifying as Two or more races, dropping from 3.70% to 3.35%. No individuals with the surname Lightning identified as Asian/Pacific Islander or Hispanic in either 2000 or 2010. This data is based on the Decennial U.S. Census.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Black | 77.78% | 78.95% | 1.5% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 9.52% | 8.13% | -14.6% |
| White | 6.35% | 6.7% | 5.51% |
| Two or More Races | 3.7% | 3.35% | -9.46% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Hispanic | 0% | 0% | 0% |