2000
#133,114
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Birkenholz
A German surname associated with the birch tree or birch wood.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 132 Americans carry the last name Birkenholz. That puts it at #145,757 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,596,624 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Birkenholz 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
132
1 in 2,596,624
Census rank
#145,757
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
115
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 115 bearers of the surname Birkenholz in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 145757th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Birkenholz, the largest self-reported group is White at 100.0%.
Origin
Meaning and origin of Birkenholz
The surname Birkenholz originated in Germany and dates back to the 12th century. It is derived from the German words "Birke" meaning birch tree and "Holz" meaning wood or forest, suggesting that the name likely referred to someone who lived near a birch forest or woodland area.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Birkenholz can be found in a medieval document from the town of Lübeck in northern Germany, dated around 1220. This document mentions a man named Henricus Birkenholz, who was a local landowner and farmer.
Another early reference to the name Birkenholz comes from the town of Marburg in central Germany, where a family with this surname is mentioned in a church registry from the late 14th century. This suggests that the name had spread to different regions of Germany by this time.
In the 16th century, a notable individual with the surname Birkenholz was Johann Birkenholz (1505-1578), a Protestant theologian and reformer who studied under Martin Luther and later became a professor at the University of Wittenberg.
During the 17th century, the Birkenholz family seemed to have established roots in the Rhineland region of western Germany. A prominent member of this lineage was Johannes Birkenholz (1617-1679), a wealthy merchant and landowner who served as a city councilor in the town of Cologne.
In the 18th century, a notable figure with the surname Birkenholz was Friedrich Birkenholz (1727-1801), a German philosopher and author who wrote extensively on ethics and moral philosophy. His works were widely read and influential during the Enlightenment period.
As the Birkenholz surname spread across Germany and into neighboring regions, it likely evolved into various spelling variations, such as Birkenholtz, Birckenholz, and Birckenholtz, reflecting local dialects and pronunciation differences.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Birkenholz
Among Census respondents with the surname Birkenholz, the largest self-reported group is White at 100.0%.
The bar chart below shows how Birkenholz 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 Birkenholz surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White100.0% · 115
Timeline
Historical Census data for Birkenholz
Birkenholz 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
#126,018
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 136
+19 bearers (+16.2%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Up 7,096 places
2020
#145,757
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
-21 bearers (-15.4%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 19,739 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #133,114 | 117 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #126,018 | 136 | 0.05 | +19 bearers (+16.2%) | Up 7,096 places |
| 2020 | #145,757 | 115 | 0.04 | -21 bearers (-15.4%) | Down 19,739 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 Birkenholz 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 | #126,018 | #145,757 | -15.7% |
| Count | 136 | 115 | -15.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.04 | -23.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Birkenholz bearers went from 136 to 115 (-15.4% change). The surname moved down 19,739 positions in the national ranking, going from #126,018 to #145,757.
FAQ
Birkenholz surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Birkenholz?
Name Census estimates that about 132 living Americans carry the surname Birkenholz. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,596,624 residents.
How common is Birkenholz?
Birkenholz ranks #145,757 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 115 people with the surname Birkenholz. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (132), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Birkenholz.
Has Birkenholz become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Birkenholz went from 136 recorded bearers to 115. That is a decrease of 21 (-15.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #126,018 to #145,757.
What does the Census say about the background of Birkenholz?
Among Census respondents with the surname Birkenholz, the largest self-reported group is White at 100.0%. 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 Birkenholz in the 2020 Census, accounting for 100.0% (115 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Birkenholz appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (100.0%). 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 Birkenholz (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 Birkenholz mean?
A German surname associated with the birch tree or birch wood. 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 Birkenholz (0.04 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 Americans have the surname Birkenholz?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.