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

Apgar, 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 Apgar surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Apgar in America

Apgar is the 13413th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Apgar surname appeared 2,272 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 Apgar.

We can also compare 2010 data for Apgar 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 Apgar

The surname APGAR has its origins in the German language and can be traced back to the Middle Ages in central Europe. The name is believed to have derived from the German word "Apfelgarten," which translates to "apple orchard" or "apple garden." This suggests that the earliest bearers of this surname may have been associated with apple cultivation or resided near an apple orchard.

One of the earliest recorded references to the name APGAR can be found in the town records of Nuremberg, Germany, dating back to the late 15th century. These records mention an individual named Hans Apfelgarter, whose surname is a variation of the same root word as APGAR.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, the APGAR surname started to appear more frequently in various regions of Germany, particularly in the states of Bavaria and Saxony. Some notable individuals from this period include Johann Apgar (1586-1651), a respected scholar and theologian from Leipzig, and Anna Apgar (1612-1678), a landowner and philanthropist from Nuremberg.

As German immigrants began to settle in North America in the 18th and 19th centuries, the APGAR surname made its way across the Atlantic. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name in the United States can be found in the records of the Pennsylvania Dutch community, where several families with the surname APGAR established themselves in the late 1700s.

Notable individuals with the APGAR surname throughout history include:

1. Virginia Apgar (1909-1974), an American obstetrical anesthesiologist who developed the Apgar Score, a method for assessing the health of newborn babies.

2. Frederick Apgar (1818-1901), an American politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from New Jersey.

3. William Apgar (1863-1932), an American businessman and inventor who patented several innovations in the field of office supplies.

4. Garry Apgar (born 1958), an American golfer who has competed on the PGA Tour and Champions Tour.

5. Lauren Apgar (born 1986), an American ice hockey player who has represented the United States in several international tournaments.

While the APGAR surname has evolved over the centuries and spread across various regions of the world, it remains rooted in its German origins, serving as a reminder of the rich cultural heritage and history associated with this longstanding family name.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Apgar

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

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

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

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