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

Bender, 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 Bender surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Bender in America

Bender is the 881st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Bender surname appeared 39,551 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 13 people would have the surname Bender.

We can also compare 2010 data for Bender 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 Bender

The surname Bender is of German origin and is derived from the occupational surname 'Binder', which referred to a person who made or repaired baskets, barrels, and other woven objects. It is believed to have emerged in the 14th century and was initially used as a descriptive term for an individual's trade or profession.

In the early days, the name was predominantly found in the regions of Bavaria and Saxony, where basket-weaving and coopering were common trades. The earliest recorded instances of the name can be traced back to the 15th century, with variations such as Bender, Binder, and Bynder appearing in various historical documents.

One of the earliest known references to the name Bender can be found in the Stadtbücher (town books) of Nürnberg, dating back to the 1400s. These records document individuals engaged in basket-weaving and coopering, suggesting the occupational origins of the surname.

Notable individuals bearing the surname Bender include Johann Bender (1516-1589), a German theologian and reformer from Nuremberg, who played a significant role in the Reformation movement. Another prominent figure was Hans Bender (1889-1966), a renowned German parapsychologist and founder of the Institute for Parapsychology and Psychohygiene in Freiburg.

In the literary world, Lukas Bender (1492-1546) was a German Renaissance humanist and theologian from Ingolstadt, known for his scholarly works on Greek and Latin literature. Additionally, Gottlieb Bender (1673-1748), a German mathematician and astronomer from Leipzig, made significant contributions to the study of celestial mechanics.

The name Bender has also been associated with various place names throughout Germany, such as Bendorf, a town in Rhineland-Palatinate, and Bendershausen, a village in Lower Saxony. These place names may have influenced the spelling and regional variations of the surname over time.

While the name Bender has its roots in Germany, it has since spread to other parts of the world through migration and has been adopted by various cultures and communities. Regardless of its geographical distribution, the surname Bender remains a testament to the rich history of occupational surnames and the significance of trades and professions in shaping personal identities.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Bender

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

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

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

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