2000
#124,109
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 128
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Alch
Derived from a place name, likely referring to someone who lived near an alder tree or alder grove.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 122 Americans carry the last name Alch. That puts it at #152,339 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,809,462 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Alch 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.
Bearers in the US
122
1 in 2,809,462
Census rank
#152,339
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
106
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 106 bearers of the surname Alch in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 152339th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Alch, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.7%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (5.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Alch
The surname ALCH is believed to have originated in Germany, with records dating back to the 13th century. It is derived from the Old German word "alch," which means "elk" or "deer." The name likely referred to someone who lived near a forest or area inhabited by elk.
One of the earliest known references to the name ALCH can be found in the Christlichen Burgervereins of Worms, a record of citizens from the city of Worms, Germany, dating back to 1289. The entry mentions a "Johannes Alch" as a resident of the city.
In the 14th century, the name appears in various records from the region of Bavaria, including the Stadtbücher von Regensburg, which mentions a "Hanns Alch" in 1367. This suggests that the name had spread to different parts of southern Germany by this time.
During the 15th century, the name ALCH can be found in records from the city of Nuremberg, a prominent center of trade and commerce in the Holy Roman Empire. The Nuremberg Hussitenkriege, a chronicle of the Hussite Wars, mentions a "Peter Alch" who fought in the conflicts between 1419 and 1436.
One of the earliest known bearers of the ALCH surname was Johannes Alch, a renowned physician and scholar who lived in the city of Erfurt in the late 15th century. He authored several influential works on medicine and was a respected figure in his field.
In the 16th century, the ALCH surname appears in records from the city of Cologne, including the Kölner Schreinsbücher, which mentions a "Hermann Alch" who was a member of the city's guild of carpenters in 1543.
During the 17th century, the name ALCH can be found in records from the region of Saxony, including the Kirchenbücher von Meissen, which mentions a "Hans Alch" who was born in the town of Meissen in 1612.
Another notable bearer of the ALCH surname was Johann Georg Alch, a German composer and organist who lived in the late 17th and early 18th centuries. He was born in Mühlhausen, Thuringia, in 1666 and is known for his contributions to church music and organ compositions.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Alch
Among Census respondents with the surname Alch, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.7%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (5.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Alch 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 Alch surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White78.3% · 83
- Hispanic or Latino5.7% · 6
- Asian and Pacific Islander5.7% · 6
- Black or African American4.7% · 5
- Two or more races4.7% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Alch
Alch 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
#145,220
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
-14 bearers (-10.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 21,111 places
2020
#152,339
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 106
-8 bearers (-7.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 7,119 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #124,109 | 128 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #145,220 | 114 | 0.04 | -14 bearers (-10.9%) | Down 21,111 places |
| 2020 | #152,339 | 106 | 0.04 | -8 bearers (-7.0%) | Down 7,119 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 Alch 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 | #145,220 | #152,339 | -4.9% |
| Count | 114 | 106 | -7.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -11.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Alch bearers went from 114 to 106 (-7.0% change). The surname moved down 7,119 positions in the national ranking, going from #145,220 to #152,339.
FAQ
Alch surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Alch?
Name Census estimates that about 122 living Americans carry the surname Alch. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,809,462 residents.
How common is Alch?
Alch ranks #152,339 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 106 people with the surname Alch. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (122), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Alch.
Has Alch become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Alch went from 114 recorded bearers to 106. That is a decrease of 8 (-7.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #145,220 to #152,339.
What does the Census say about the background of Alch?
Among Census respondents with the surname Alch, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.7%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (5.7%). 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 Alch in the 2020 Census, accounting for 78.3% (83 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Alch appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (78.3%), Hispanic (5.7%), Asian/Pacific Islander (5.7%). 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 Alch (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 Alch mean?
Derived from a place name, likely referring to someone who lived near an alder tree or alder grove. 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 Alch (0.04 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 Americans have the surname Alch?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.