2000
#5,554
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,743
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.13
Rare Last name
Beer
An occupational surname for a brewer or seller of beer, or a nickname for a beer drinker.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,688 Americans carry the last name Beer. That puts it at #5,721 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.95 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 51,249 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Beer 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Beer with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
6.7K
1 in 51,249
Census rank
#5,721
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,832 bearers of the surname Beer in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.95 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5721st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Beer, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Beer
The surname Beer originates from Germany, where it first appeared in the early 13th century. It is derived from the Middle High German word "bier," meaning "beer," suggesting that the name was likely an occupational surname given to a brewer or tavern keeper.
In the Bairisch dialects of Bavaria and Austria, the name was often spelled as "Pier" or "Byr." The earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in medieval German records, such as the "Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae Regiae," which mentions a "Conradus Bier" in 1288.
One of the earliest known bearers of the surname was Johann Beer, a German brewer and landowner who lived in the city of Nuremberg in the late 15th century. Another notable figure was Michael Beer, a German mathematician and astronomer born in 1800, who made significant contributions to the field of optics and celestial mechanics.
The Beer surname also has a long history in England, where it is believed to have been introduced by German immigrants in the 16th and 17th centuries. One of the earliest recorded instances in England is that of John Beer, a merchant from Bristol who is mentioned in the city's records in 1567.
In the United States, the Beer surname can be traced back to the colonial era, with the earliest known bearer being Hans Beer, a German immigrant who settled in Pennsylvania in the late 17th century. Another prominent American with the surname was George Lewis Beer, a historian and educator born in 1872, who served as a professor at Columbia University and wrote extensively on British colonial history.
Other notable individuals with the surname Beer include Max Beer, a German socialist and writer born in 1864, and Rachel Beer, an English novelist and biographer born in 1858, known for her works on the lives of famous authors and intellectuals.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Beer
Among Census respondents with the surname Beer, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Beer 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 Beer surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.1% · 5,371
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 170
- Two or more races2.8% · 161
- Black or African American1.1% · 67
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 48
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 15
Timeline
Historical Census data for Beer
Beer 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
#5,829
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,931
+188 bearers (+3.3%)
Per 100,000 2.01
Rank movement Down 275 places
2020
#5,721
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,832
-99 bearers (-1.7%)
Per 100,000 1.95
Rank movement Up 108 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,554 | 5,743 | 2.13 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,829 | 5,931 | 2.01 | +188 bearers (+3.3%) | Down 275 places |
| 2020 | #5,721 | 5,832 | 1.95 | -99 bearers (-1.7%) | Up 108 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 Beer 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 | #5,829 | #5,721 | 1.9% |
| Count | 5,931 | 5,832 | -1.7% |
| Per 100K | 2.01 | 1.95 | -2.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Beer bearers went from 5,931 to 5,832 (-1.7% change). The surname moved up 108 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,829 to #5,721.
FAQ
Beer surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Beer?
Name Census estimates that about 6,688 living Americans carry the surname Beer. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 51,249 residents.
How common is Beer?
Beer ranks #5,721 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.95 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,832 people with the surname Beer. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,688), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.95 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.95 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Beer.
Has Beer become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Beer went from 5,931 recorded bearers to 5,832. That is a decrease of 99 (-1.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #5,829 to #5,721.
What does the Census say about the background of Beer?
Among Census respondents with the surname Beer, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Beer in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.1% (5,371 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Beer appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.1%), Hispanic (2.9%), Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Beer (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 Beer mean?
An occupational surname for a brewer or seller of beer, or a nickname for a beer drinker. 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 Beer (1.95 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 share the surname Beer?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.