2000
#98,770
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 170
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.06
Very Rare Last name
Bieling
A toponymic surname derived from a place name in Germany.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 165 Americans carry the last name Bieling. That puts it at #125,089 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.05 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,077,299 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Bieling 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
165
1 in 2,077,299
Census rank
#125,089
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
144
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 144 bearers of the surname Bieling in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.05 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 125089th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Bieling, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.4%) and Two or More Races (1.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Bieling
The surname Bieling has its origins in Germany, dating back to the medieval period. It is believed to be derived from the Old German word "biele," which means "flat" or "level." This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone who lived on a flat or level piece of land.
The earliest recorded instances of the name Bieling can be traced back to the 13th century in various German regions, such as Bavaria and Saxony. In those times, surnames were often derived from physical characteristics, occupations, or places of residence.
One of the earliest mentions of the name Bieling can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae, a collection of historical documents from Saxony, which includes references to individuals bearing this surname in the late 13th century.
Over the centuries, the name Bieling has undergone various spellings, including Bielings, Bielingk, and Byeling. These variations were common as spelling conventions were not standardized, and names were often recorded phonetically.
Notable individuals with the surname Bieling throughout history include Johann Bieling (1594-1667), a German theologian and philosopher who served as a professor at the University of Leipzig. Another prominent figure was Friedrich Wilhelm Bieling (1798-1872), a German painter and engraver known for his landscapes and portraits.
In the 18th century, Johann Christoph Bieling (1703-1770) was a renowned German organist and composer who made significant contributions to the development of organ music during the Baroque period.
Another noteworthy individual was Carl Bieling (1820-1896), a German-American architect who designed several notable buildings in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, including the Milwaukee County Courthouse and the Exposition Building.
The name Bieling has also been associated with various place names in Germany, such as Bielingshausen, a municipality in the state of Hesse, and Bielingen, a town in Lower Saxony.
While the surname Bieling is not among the most common in Germany, it has a rich history and has been carried by individuals who have made significant contributions in various fields throughout the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Bieling
Among Census respondents with the surname Bieling, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.4%) and Two or More Races (1.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Bieling 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 Bieling surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White96.5% · 139
- Hispanic or Latino1.4% · 2
- Two or more races1.4% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Bieling
Bieling 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
#101,737
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 177
+7 bearers (+4.1%)
Per 100,000 0.06
Rank movement Down 2,967 places
2020
#125,089
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 144
-33 bearers (-18.6%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Down 23,352 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #98,770 | 170 | 0.06 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #101,737 | 177 | 0.06 | +7 bearers (+4.1%) | Down 2,967 places |
| 2020 | #125,089 | 144 | 0.05 | -33 bearers (-18.6%) | Down 23,352 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 Bieling 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 | #101,737 | #125,089 | -23.0% |
| Count | 177 | 144 | -18.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.06 | 0.05 | -19.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Bieling bearers went from 177 to 144 (-18.6% change). The surname moved down 23,352 positions in the national ranking, going from #101,737 to #125,089.
FAQ
Bieling surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Bieling?
Name Census estimates that about 165 living Americans carry the surname Bieling. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,077,299 residents.
How common is Bieling?
Bieling ranks #125,089 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.05 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 144 people with the surname Bieling. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (165), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.05 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.05 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Bieling.
Has Bieling become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Bieling went from 177 recorded bearers to 144. That is a decrease of 33 (-18.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #101,737 to #125,089.
What does the Census say about the background of Bieling?
Among Census respondents with the surname Bieling, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.4%) and Two or More Races (1.4%). 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 Bieling in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.5% (139 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Bieling appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (96.5%), Hispanic (1.4%), Two or More Races (1.4%). 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 Bieling (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 Bieling mean?
A toponymic surname derived from a place name in Germany. 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 Bieling (0.05 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 have the surname Bieling?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.