2000
#2,041
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 16,305
First available Census row
Per 100,000 6.04
Uncommon Last name
Adler
An occupational surname of German origin referring to an eagle keeper or someone who hunted with eagles.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 18,289 Americans carry the last name Adler. That puts it at #2,224 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 5.34 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 18,741 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Adler 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 Adler with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
18K
1 in 18,741
Census rank
#2,224
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
5.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
16K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 15,949 bearers of the surname Adler in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 5.34 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2224th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Adler, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Two or More Races (2.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Adler
The surname Adler is of German origin, derived from the German word "Adler," which means "eagle." The name likely emerged in the Middle Ages, possibly during the 12th or 13th century, as a surname denoting a person's occupation or personal characteristic.
The earliest recorded instances of the name Adler can be traced back to various regions of Germany, such as Bavaria, Saxony, and Westphalia. It is believed that the name was initially associated with individuals who worked with eagles, such as falconers or those who trained or kept eagles as hunting companions.
In some cases, the name Adler may have also been bestowed upon individuals who exhibited traits reminiscent of an eagle, such as strength, bravery, or keen eyesight. Alternatively, it could have been given to someone who lived near an area known for its eagle population or had an eagle symbol as part of their family crest or coat of arms.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Adler can be found in the 14th-century Stadtbuch (city book) of Nuremberg, which mentions an individual named Konrad Adler in the year 1349. Another notable early reference is from the 15th century, where a Johannes Adler is mentioned in the Chronica Regia Coloniensis, a chronicle of Cologne.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the surname Adler. One such figure was Alfred Adler (1870-1937), an Austrian medical doctor and psychologist who founded the school of individual psychology. Another prominent Adler was Mortimer J. Adler (1902-2001), an American philosopher, educator, and author known for his work on the Great Books of the Western World.
Other notable individuals with the surname Adler include Felix Adler (1851-1933), a German-American professor and founder of the Ethical Culture movement, and Cyrus Adler (1863-1940), an American Semitic scholar and educator who served as the president of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America.
In the realm of literature, the name Adler is associated with Renata Adler (1938-), an American author and critic known for her novels and non-fiction works.
While the surname Adler has its roots in Germany, it has since spread to other parts of the world through migration and has become a recognized surname in various countries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Adler
Among Census respondents with the surname Adler, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Two or More Races (2.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Adler 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 Adler surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.3% · 14,727
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 596
- Two or more races2.3% · 372
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 152
- Black or African American0.5% · 84
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 18
Timeline
Historical Census data for Adler
Adler 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
#2,223
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 16,412
+107 bearers (+0.7%)
Per 100,000 5.56
Rank movement Down 182 places
2020
#2,224
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 15,949
-463 bearers (-2.8%)
Per 100,000 5.34
Rank movement Down 1 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,041 | 16,305 | 6.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,223 | 16,412 | 5.56 | +107 bearers (+0.7%) | Down 182 places |
| 2020 | #2,224 | 15,949 | 5.34 | -463 bearers (-2.8%) | Down 1 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 Adler 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 | #2,223 | #2,224 | -0.0% |
| Count | 16,412 | 15,949 | -2.8% |
| Per 100K | 5.56 | 5.34 | -4.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Adler bearers went from 16,412 to 15,949 (-2.8% change). The surname moved down 1 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,223 to #2,224.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Adler
FAQ
Adler surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Adler?
Name Census estimates that about 18,289 living Americans carry the surname Adler. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 18,741 residents.
How common is Adler?
Adler ranks #2,224 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 5.34 per 100,000 residents, which is about 5 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 15,949 people with the surname Adler. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (18,289), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 5.34 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 5.34 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 5 of them to have the surname Adler.
Has Adler become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Adler went from 16,412 recorded bearers to 15,949. That is a decrease of 463 (-2.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,223 to #2,224.
What does the Census say about the background of Adler?
Among Census respondents with the surname Adler, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Adler in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.3% (14,727 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Adler appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.3%), Hispanic (3.7%), Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Adler (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 Adler mean?
An occupational surname of German origin referring to an eagle keeper or someone who hunted with eagles. 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 Adler (5.34 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 share the surname Adler?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.