2000
#11,795
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,432
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.90
Rare Last name
Baumgart
An occupational surname of German origin referring to an orchard owner or someone living near an orchard.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,789 Americans carry the last name Baumgart. That puts it at #12,219 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.81 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 122,895 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Baumgart 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
2.8K
1 in 122,895
Census rank
#12,219
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,432 bearers of the surname Baumgart in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.81 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12219th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Baumgart, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.9%) and Hispanic (1.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Baumgart
The surname Baumgart originated in Germany, dating back to the Middle Ages. It is a compound word derived from the German words "Baum" meaning tree and "Garten" meaning garden, suggesting that the name initially referred to someone who lived near or worked in an orchard or arboretum.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Baumgart can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Brandenburgensis, a collection of historical documents from the Margraviate of Brandenburg, which mentions a certain "Conradus Baumgart" in the year 1375.
Another notable early reference is found in the municipal records of Nuremberg, where a "Hans Baumgart" is listed as a resident in the late 15th century.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the name appears in various records and documents across German-speaking regions, often with slight variations in spelling such as "Baumgarten," "Baumgarter," or "Baumgartner."
Among the notable individuals with the surname Baumgart throughout history are:
1. Johann Christian Gottlieb Baumgarten (1765-1843), a German philosopher and academic who made significant contributions to the field of aesthetics.
2. Michael Baumgarten (1812-1889), a German lawyer and politician who served as a member of the Frankfurt Parliament during the Revolutions of 1848.
3. Hermann Baumgarten (1825-1893), a German historian and theologian, known for his extensive works on the history of Christianity and the Reformation.
4. Otto Baumgarten (1858-1934), a German painter and illustrator, renowned for his landscapes and depictions of rural life in Westphalia.
5. Siegmund Baumgart (1884-1965), a German military officer and strategist who played a key role in the development of armored warfare tactics during World War II.
While the surname Baumgart may have originated from a specific location or occupation, it eventually spread across Germany and other German-speaking regions, with various branches and lineages emerging over time.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Baumgart
Among Census respondents with the surname Baumgart, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.9%) and Hispanic (1.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Baumgart 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 Baumgart surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.5% · 2,274
- Two or more races2.9% · 71
- Hispanic or Latino1.9% · 45
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 24
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 10
- Black or African American0.3% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Baumgart
Baumgart 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
#12,547
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,469
+37 bearers (+1.5%)
Per 100,000 0.84
Rank movement Down 752 places
2020
#12,219
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,432
-37 bearers (-1.5%)
Per 100,000 0.81
Rank movement Up 328 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,795 | 2,432 | 0.90 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,547 | 2,469 | 0.84 | +37 bearers (+1.5%) | Down 752 places |
| 2020 | #12,219 | 2,432 | 0.81 | -37 bearers (-1.5%) | Up 328 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 Baumgart 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 | #12,547 | #12,219 | 2.6% |
| Count | 2,469 | 2,432 | -1.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.84 | 0.81 | -3.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Baumgart bearers went from 2,469 to 2,432 (-1.5% change). The surname moved up 328 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,547 to #12,219.
FAQ
Baumgart surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Baumgart?
Name Census estimates that about 2,789 living Americans carry the surname Baumgart. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 122,895 residents.
How common is Baumgart?
Baumgart ranks #12,219 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.81 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,432 people with the surname Baumgart. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,789), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.81 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.81 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Baumgart.
Has Baumgart become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Baumgart went from 2,469 recorded bearers to 2,432. That is a decrease of 37 (-1.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #12,547 to #12,219.
What does the Census say about the background of Baumgart?
Among Census respondents with the surname Baumgart, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.9%) and Hispanic (1.9%). 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 Baumgart in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.5% (2,274 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Baumgart appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.5%), Two or More Races (2.9%), Hispanic (1.9%). 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 Baumgart (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 Baumgart mean?
An occupational surname of German origin referring to an orchard owner or someone living near an orchard. 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 Baumgart (0.81 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 common is the surname Baumgart?
Find out how many people have the last name Baumgart on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.