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

Behring, 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 Behring surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Behring in America

Behring is the 49365th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Behring surname appeared 426 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Behring.

We can also compare 2010 data for Behring 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 Behring

The surname Behring is believed to have originated in Germany, possibly in the region of Lower Saxony. It is thought to be derived from the Old German word "bera," which means "bear," and may have been initially used as a nickname for someone who was strong or fierce like a bear.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the Behring surname can be found in the Bremisches Urkundenbuch, a collection of historical documents from the city of Bremen, dated around the 13th century. The name was likely associated with people living in or around the area of Bremen at that time.

In the 15th century, there are records of a merchant named Hans Behring who was involved in the Hanseatic League, a powerful economic alliance of merchants and trade guilds that dominated maritime commerce in Northern Europe.

One of the most famous individuals with the surname Behring was the Danish explorer Vitus Jonassen Behring (1680-1741), who led the first European expedition to Alaska and the Bering Strait, which was later named after him.

Another notable person with this surname was Johann Elert Bode (1747-1826), a German astronomer and mathematician who is best known for his contributions to the calculation of planetary orbits and the publication of the annual astronomical almanac Berliner Astronomisches Jahrbuch.

In the 19th century, a German physician named Emil von Behring (1854-1917) made significant contributions to the field of immunology and was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1901 for his work on serum therapy and the development of a diphtheria antitoxin.

Other historical figures with the surname Behring include the German painter and printmaker Hans Behring (1888-1958), known for his landscape paintings and etchings, and the American architect and urban planner Walter Behrendt (1884-1945), who was involved in the design and planning of several cities in the United States.

The surname Behring has also been associated with various place names, particularly in Germany, where towns and villages such as Behringen and Behringersdorf can be found.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Behring

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

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

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

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