Find out how popular the last name Alter is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Alter.

Alter, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Alter surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Alter in America

Alter is the 8597th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Alter surname appeared 3,830 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Alter.

We can also compare 2010 data for Alter to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Alter

The surname Alter is of German origin, deriving from the Middle High German word "alter" meaning "old" or "ancient." It is believed to have originated as an occupational surname, referring to an elder or older person in a community or village.

The earliest known record of the name dates back to the 13th century in the German states of Bavaria and Saxony. It appears in various medieval records and manuscripts, often spelled as "Alter" or "Alder."

In the 14th century, the name Alter can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae, a collection of historical documents from Saxony. This suggests that the name was well-established in this region during that period.

One of the earliest known individuals with the surname Alter was Johannes Alter, a German scholar and theologian who lived in the late 15th century (c. 1450-1515). He was a prominent figure in the early days of the Protestant Reformation and served as a professor at the University of Leipzig.

Another notable bearer of the name was Johann Nepomuk Alter (1793-1853), a German Catholic priest and theologian. He was a renowned scholar and writer, known for his work on ecclesiastical history and canon law.

In the 16th century, the name Alter was also found in the town of Altenburg in the German state of Thuringia. This place name, derived from the German words "alt" (old) and "burg" (castle), may have influenced the spelling and pronunciation of the surname in that region.

During the 17th and 18th centuries, the Alter surname spread throughout various German-speaking areas, including present-day Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. It can be found in numerous historical records and documents from this period.

One notable individual from this time was Johann Matthias Alter (1707-1781), a German composer and organist who served as the Kapellmeister (music director) at the court of the Prince-Bishop of Eichstätt.

In the 19th century, the surname Alter continued to be prevalent in German-speaking regions, and it also began to appear in other parts of Europe and the Americas due to emigration. For example, the Austrian painter and etcher Rudolf von Alter (1812-1905) was a well-known artist in his time.

Over the centuries, the surname Alter has been carried by individuals from various walks of life, including scholars, religious figures, artists, and professionals. It remains a prominent surname in Germany and other German-speaking countries, as well as among descendants of German immigrants around the world.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Alter

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Alter.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Alter was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Alter has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Alter was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Alter, please contact us.

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