2000
#12,553
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,264
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.84
Rare Last name
Ackermann
An occupational surname referring to a plowman or fieldworker.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,815 Americans carry the last name Ackermann. That puts it at #12,118 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.82 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 121,760 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Ackermann 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Ackermann with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.8K
1 in 121,760
Census rank
#12,118
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,455 bearers of the surname Ackermann in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.82 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12118th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Ackermann, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.3%) and Two or More Races (3.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Ackermann
The surname Ackermann is of German origin, derived from the occupational term "Ackermann," which translates to "plowman" or "farmer." This name can be traced back to the early medieval period, around the 12th century, when it was used to identify individuals who worked as farmers or cultivated fields.
The name Ackermann is believed to have originated in various regions of Germany, including Bavaria, Saxony, and Thuringia, where agriculture played a significant role in the local economies. It was initially spelled in different ways, such as Akerman, Ackerman, or Akkerman, reflecting local dialects and variations in spelling conventions.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Ackermann can be found in the Codex Traditionum Corbeiensium, a medieval manuscript from the Corvey Abbey in Westphalia, Germany, dating back to the 9th century. This document mentions an individual named Ackermann as a landowner or tenant farmer.
In the 13th century, the name Ackermann appeared in various medieval records, such as the Urkundenbuch der Stadt Strassburg (Charter Book of the City of Strasbourg), indicating the presence of individuals with this surname in the Alsace region of modern-day France and Germany.
Notable individuals with the surname Ackermann throughout history include:
1. Johann Christian Gottlieb Ackermann (1756-1801), a German literary scholar and professor at the University of Mainz.
2. Rudolph Ackermann (1764-1834), a German-born British publisher and bookseller, known for introducing the popular art of lithography in England.
3. Louise Victorine Ackermann (1813-1890), a French poet and author, known for her work in promoting women's education and rights.
4. Max Ackermann (1887-1975), a German-born American painter and printmaker, known for his etchings and woodcuts depicting urban scenes.
5. Franz Ackermann (born 1963), a German artist and sculptor, known for his large-scale installations and abstract works.
The name Ackermann has also been associated with various place names, such as Ackermannsau, a village in the district of Neustadt an der Waldnaab in Bavaria, Germany, and Ackermann's Farm, a historic farm in Pennsylvania, United States, established by German immigrants in the 18th century.
While the surname Ackermann may have evolved over time and been adopted by families in different regions, its origin can be traced back to the occupation of farming and cultivating fields in medieval Germany, reflecting the agricultural roots of many European surnames.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ackermann
Among Census respondents with the surname Ackermann, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.3%) and Two or More Races (3.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Ackermann 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 Ackermann surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.8% · 2,180
- Hispanic or Latino5.3% · 131
- Two or more races3.5% · 85
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.5% · 38
- Black or African American0.7% · 16
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Ackermann
Ackermann 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
#12,432
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,499
+235 bearers (+10.4%)
Per 100,000 0.85
Rank movement Up 121 places
2020
#12,118
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,455
-44 bearers (-1.8%)
Per 100,000 0.82
Rank movement Up 314 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,553 | 2,264 | 0.84 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,432 | 2,499 | 0.85 | +235 bearers (+10.4%) | Up 121 places |
| 2020 | #12,118 | 2,455 | 0.82 | -44 bearers (-1.8%) | Up 314 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 Ackermann 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 | #12,432 | #12,118 | 2.5% |
| Count | 2,499 | 2,455 | -1.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.85 | 0.82 | -3.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Ackermann bearers went from 2,499 to 2,455 (-1.8% change). The surname moved up 314 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,432 to #12,118.
FAQ
Ackermann surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Ackermann?
Name Census estimates that about 2,815 living Americans carry the surname Ackermann. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 121,760 residents.
How common is Ackermann?
Ackermann ranks #12,118 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.82 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 2,455 people with the surname Ackermann. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,815), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.82 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.82 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 Ackermann.
Has Ackermann become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Ackermann went from 2,499 recorded bearers to 2,455. That is a decrease of 44 (-1.8%). In the national ranking it rose from #12,432 to #12,118.
What does the Census say about the background of Ackermann?
Among Census respondents with the surname Ackermann, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.3%) and Two or More Races (3.5%). 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 Ackermann in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.8% (2,180 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Ackermann appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.8%), Hispanic (5.3%), Two or More Races (3.5%). 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 Ackermann (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 Ackermann mean?
An occupational surname referring to a plowman or fieldworker. 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 Ackermann (0.82 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 Ackermann?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.