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Les Family History

Les Surname Meaning

Polish, Slovenian, and Czech: topographic name for someone who lived in a forest from Polish and Slovenian dialect and Czech les ‘wood, forest’. The homonymous Sorbian cognate Lěs is found in Germanized forms only (see Lies).

Polish (Leś): probably a cognate of 3 below. In some cases probably also Slovenian and Czech (Leš): from a short form of the personal name Aleš (see Ales).

The homonymous and possibly related Sorbian surname Lěš is found in Germanized and probably also Americanized forms only (see Lesch and Lesh).

In some cases probably also Croatian (Leš): unflattering nickname from leš ‘dead body’. Compare Lesh.

Source: Dictionary of American Family Names 2nd edition, 2022


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Where is the Les family from?

You can see how Les families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Les family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1841 and 1920. The most Les families were found in USA in 1920. In 1891 there were 23 Les families living in London. This was about 24% of all the recorded Les's in United Kingdom. London had the highest population of Les families in 1891.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Les surname lived. Within census records, you can often find information like name of household members, ages, birthplaces, residences, and occupations.
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What did your Les ancestors do for a living?

In 1939, Unpaid Domestic Duties was the top reported job for people in the United Kingdom named Les. 79% of Les women worked as an Unpaid Domestic Duties.

View Census Data for Les | Data not to scale

*We display top occupations by gender to maintain their historical accuracy during times when men and women often performed different jobs.

Top Female Occupations In 1939

  • Unpaid Domestic Duties
    79%
  • Dressmaker
    11%
  • Shorthand Typist
    11%

What Les family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 16,000 census records available for the last name Les. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Les census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search UK census records for Les

Passenger Lists

There are 4,000 immigration records available for the last name Les. Passenger lists are your ticket to knowing when your ancestors arrived in the UK, and how they made the journey - from the ship name to ports of arrival and departure.

View all Les immigration records

Draft Cards

There are 16,000 military records available for the last name Les. For the veterans among your Les ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

View all Les military records

You've only scratched the surface of Les family history

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What is the average Les lifespan?

Between 1959 and 2004, in the United States, Les life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1959, and highest in 2001. The average life expectancy for Les in 1959 was 50, and 84 in 2004.

View Social Security Death Index (SSDI) for Les

An unusually short lifespan might indicate that your Les ancestors lived in harsh conditions. A short lifespan might also indicate health problems that were once prevalent in your family. The SSDI is a searchable database of more than 70 million names. You can find birthdates, death dates, addresses and more.

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