2000
#143,847
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 106
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Baehre
A variant spelling of the German surname meaning "bear" or "carry".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 128 Americans carry the last name Baehre. That puts it at #147,954 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,677,768 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Baehre 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
128
1 in 2,677,768
Census rank
#147,954
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
112
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 112 bearers of the surname Baehre in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 147954th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Baehre, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (8.0%) and Two or More Races (4.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Baehre
The surname BAEHRE originates from Germany, with its roots tracing back to the 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old German word "bär," meaning "bear," possibly referring to a personal characteristic or an occupation related to bear hunting or bear keeping.
The earliest recorded instances of the BAEHRE surname can be found in various German records and documents dating back to the late 16th and early 17th centuries. One notable example is the mention of Hans BAEHRE in the church records of Saalfeld, Thuringia, in 1587.
In the 17th and 18th centuries, variations of the spelling emerged, such as BÄHR, BAEHR, and BÄHR, reflecting regional dialects and scribal practices. These variations were often associated with specific geographic locations within Germany.
The BAEHRE surname has been linked to several prominent individuals throughout history. One such figure was Johann Christian BAEHRE (1752-1826), a German theologian and philosopher who served as a professor at the University of Leipzig and published works on ethics and moral philosophy.
Another notable bearer of the BAEHRE name was Friedrich Wilhelm BAEHRE (1801-1870), a German architect and urban planner who contributed to the development of several German cities, including Berlin and Potsdam.
In the 19th century, the BAEHRE surname gained recognition through the work of Gottlieb Friedrich BAEHRE (1806-1889), a German botanist and explorer who conducted extensive research on plant species in South America and published several significant works on the flora of Brazil and Argentina.
The name BAEHRE also had a presence in the literary world, with the writer and poet Carl Friedrich BAEHRE (1823-1893) being a notable figure. His works, which often explored themes of nature and rural life, were influential in the German Romantic movement.
Another individual of historical significance bearing the BAEHRE surname was Otto BAEHRE (1867-1945), a German engineer and industrialist who played a pivotal role in the development of the electrical engineering industry in Germany during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Baehre
Among Census respondents with the surname Baehre, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (8.0%) and Two or More Races (4.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Baehre 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 Baehre surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.5% · 98
- Hispanic or Latino8.0% · 9
- Two or more races4.5% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Baehre
Baehre 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
#137,327
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 122
+16 bearers (+15.1%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 6,520 places
2020
#147,954
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
-10 bearers (-8.2%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 10,627 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #143,847 | 106 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #137,327 | 122 | 0.04 | +16 bearers (+15.1%) | Up 6,520 places |
| 2020 | #147,954 | 112 | 0.04 | -10 bearers (-8.2%) | Down 10,627 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 Baehre 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 | #137,327 | #147,954 | -7.7% |
| Count | 122 | 112 | -8.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -6.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Baehre bearers went from 122 to 112 (-8.2% change). The surname moved down 10,627 positions in the national ranking, going from #137,327 to #147,954.
FAQ
Baehre surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Baehre?
Name Census estimates that about 128 living Americans carry the surname Baehre. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,677,768 residents.
How common is Baehre?
Baehre ranks #147,954 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 112 people with the surname Baehre. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (128), 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 Baehre.
Has Baehre become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Baehre went from 122 recorded bearers to 112. That is a decrease of 10 (-8.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #137,327 to #147,954.
What does the Census say about the background of Baehre?
Among Census respondents with the surname Baehre, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (8.0%) and Two or More Races (4.5%). 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 Baehre in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.5% (98 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Baehre appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.5%), Hispanic (8.0%), Two or More Races (4.5%). 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 Baehre (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 Baehre mean?
A variant spelling of the German surname meaning "bear" or "carry". 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 Baehre (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 are called Baehre?
Want to know how many people have the last name Baehre? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.