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

Barnhart, 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 Barnhart surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Barnhart in America

Barnhart is the 1777th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Barnhart surname appeared 20,157 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 7 people would have the surname Barnhart.

We can also compare 2010 data for Barnhart 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 Barnhart

The surname Barnhart is believed to have originated in Germany. It is derived from the old German words "barn" meaning "child" and "hart" meaning "brave" or "strong". Barnhart was initially a Germanic given name, but over time, it transitioned into a hereditary surname.

The earliest records of the name Barnhart can be traced back to the 12th century in various German regions, including Bavaria and Saxony. In the 13th century, the name appeared in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae, an important collection of historical documents from Saxony.

During the medieval period, the Barnhart surname was also found in Switzerland, where it was sometimes spelled as "Barnhardt". The Swiss branch of the family can be traced back to the 14th century, with records showing a Johannes Barnhart living in Zurich in 1372.

One of the earliest known bearers of the Barnhart surname was Konrad Barnhart, a prominent German merchant and landowner who lived in the 15th century. He was mentioned in several historical documents from the city of Nuremberg, where he owned significant properties.

As the surname spread across Europe, it evolved into various spellings, such as Barnhardt, Barnhart, and Barnhartt. These variations were often influenced by regional dialects and scribal errors in record-keeping.

Among notable individuals with the Barnhart surname, we have:

1. Johann Barnhart (1630-1703), a German Protestant theologian and author from Saxony.
2. Friedrich Barnhart (1768-1842), a German-American farmer and Revolutionary War soldier who settled in Pennsylvania.
3. Elizabeth Barnhart (1794-1859), an American pioneer and midwife who lived in Indiana and helped deliver over 3,000 babies.
4. Johann Barnhart (1854-1928), a German-American architect who designed several notable buildings in Chicago, including the Old Colony Building.
5. Clarence Barnhart (1900-1993), an American lexicographer and editor, best known for his work on the Thorndike-Barnhart dictionaries.

Over the centuries, the Barnhart surname has been widely dispersed across various regions, including Germany, Switzerland, the United States, and other parts of the world, reflecting the migration patterns of its bearers.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Barnhart

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

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

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

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