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

Altvater, 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 Altvater surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Altvater in America

Altvater is the 43969th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Altvater surname appeared 490 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Altvater.

We can also compare 2010 data for Altvater 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 Altvater

The surname Altvater is of German origin, and it is believed to have originated in the region of Silesia, which is now located in modern-day Poland and the Czech Republic. The name Altvater is derived from the German words "alt" meaning "old" and "Vater" meaning "father," suggesting that it was likely a descriptive name given to an elderly man or the head of a household.

One of the earliest recorded references to the name Altvater can be found in the records of the town of Breslau (now Wrocław, Poland) from the 16th century. These records mention individuals with the name Altvater, indicating that the name was in use during this time period.

In the 17th century, there are records of an individual named Johann Altvater, who was born in 1635 in the town of Liegnitz (now Legnica, Poland). Johann Altvater was a respected clockmaker and is considered one of the earliest known individuals with this surname.

Another notable individual with the surname Altvater was Karl Altvater, who was born in 1796 in the town of Freiburg, Germany. Karl Altvater was a prominent philosopher and writer, and his works were published in the early 19th century.

During the 19th century, the Altvater surname also appeared in various place names in the regions of Silesia and the Sudeten Mountains. For example, the Altvater Mountain Range (Altvatergebirge in German) was named after this surname, suggesting that individuals with this name may have lived in or near this area.

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, several individuals with the surname Altvater made notable contributions in various fields. One such individual was Wilhelm Altvater, who was born in 1881 and was a renowned architect in Germany. He designed several notable buildings, including the Rostock City Hall and the Leipzig Opera House.

Another notable individual with this surname was Hans Altvater, who was born in 1892 and was a German politician and member of the Nazi Party during World War II. He served as the Gauleiter (regional leader) of the Gau Salzburg in Austria from 1939 to 1945.

It is worth noting that while the surname Altvater is primarily associated with the German-speaking regions of Europe, it is possible that individuals with this surname may have migrated to other parts of the world over time.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Altvater

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

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 Altvater 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 Altvater 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 Altvater was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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