2000
#140,756
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 109
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Altpeter
An old surname of German origin literally meaning "old Peter".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 125 Americans carry the last name Altpeter. That puts it at #150,205 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,742,035 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Altpeter 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
125
1 in 2,742,035
Census rank
#150,205
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
109
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 109 bearers of the surname Altpeter in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 150205th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Altpeter, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Altpeter
The surname Altpeter has its origins in Germany, with roots dating back to the Middle Ages. It is derived from the German words "alt" meaning old and "peter" referring to the given name Peter. This combination suggests the name may have originally referred to a person with the given name Peter who was considered elderly or the elder of a group.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Altpeter name can be found in the Deutsches Familiennamen-Lexikon, a comprehensive dictionary of German surnames, which cites a Johannes Altpeter from Quedlinburg in 1479. This town, located in present-day Saxony-Anhalt, was a significant cultural and religious center during the Middle Ages, lending credence to the name's longevity.
In the 16th century, records show an Altpeter family residing in the town of Mühlhausen, now part of Thuringia. Notably, a certain Hans Altpeter was a prominent citizen and merchant in this town during the 1560s, suggesting the family's established status in the region.
The name Altpeter appears to have spread beyond Germany in the centuries that followed, with notable individuals bearing the surname emerging in various parts of Europe. One such individual was Johann Michael Altpeter, a German-born mathematician and astronomer who lived from 1661 to 1731 and made significant contributions to the field of celestial mechanics.
Another notable figure was Friedrich Wilhelm Altpeter, a German-born military officer who served in the Russian Imperial Army during the late 18th century. He was recognized for his bravery and leadership during the Russo-Turkish War of 1787-1792 and later attained the rank of Major General.
In the realm of arts and literature, Carl Altpeter, a German painter and etcher, gained recognition for his exquisite landscape paintings during the latter half of the 19th century. He was born in 1830 and lived until 1905, leaving behind a rich artistic legacy.
While the Altpeter surname has its roots in Germany, it has since spread to other parts of the world through migration and cultural exchange. Regardless of its geographic distribution, the name remains a testament to its rich historical origins and the lives of those who have borne it over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Altpeter
Among Census respondents with the surname Altpeter, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Altpeter 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 Altpeter surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.2% · 95
- Hispanic or Latino6.4% · 7
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.7% · 4
- Two or more races2.8% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Altpeter
Altpeter 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
#144,141
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
+6 bearers (+5.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 3,385 places
2020
#150,205
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 109
-6 bearers (-5.2%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 6,064 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #140,756 | 109 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #144,141 | 115 | 0.04 | +6 bearers (+5.5%) | Down 3,385 places |
| 2020 | #150,205 | 109 | 0.04 | -6 bearers (-5.2%) | Down 6,064 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 Altpeter 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 | #144,141 | #150,205 | -4.2% |
| Count | 115 | 109 | -5.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -8.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Altpeter bearers went from 115 to 109 (-5.2% change). The surname moved down 6,064 positions in the national ranking, going from #144,141 to #150,205.
FAQ
Altpeter surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Altpeter?
Name Census estimates that about 125 living Americans carry the surname Altpeter. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,742,035 residents.
How common is Altpeter?
Altpeter ranks #150,205 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 109 people with the surname Altpeter. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (125), 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 Altpeter.
Has Altpeter become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Altpeter went from 115 recorded bearers to 109. That is a decrease of 6 (-5.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #144,141 to #150,205.
What does the Census say about the background of Altpeter?
Among Census respondents with the surname Altpeter, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.7%). 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 Altpeter in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.2% (95 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Altpeter appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.2%), Hispanic (6.4%), Asian/Pacific Islander (3.7%). 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 Altpeter (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 Altpeter mean?
An old surname of German origin literally meaning "old Peter". 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 Altpeter (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 people have the last name Altpeter?
If you just want to know how many people have the last name Altpeter, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.