2000
#4,835
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,663
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.47
Rare Last name
Bischoff
A German occupational surname referring to a bishop, derived from the Middle High German "bischof" meaning "bishop."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 7,674 Americans carry the last name Bischoff. That puts it at #5,077 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.24 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 44,664 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Bischoff 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 Bischoff with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
7.7K
1 in 44,664
Census rank
#5,077
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
6.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 6,692 bearers of the surname Bischoff in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.24 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5077th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Bischoff, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.6%) and Two or More Races (2.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Bischoff
The surname Bischoff originated in Germany during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the German word "Bischof," which means "bishop." This suggests that the earliest bearers of this name may have been employed by or associated with a bishop or church official.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Bischoff name can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae, a collection of medieval documents from the region of Saxony, dating back to the 12th century. The name is also mentioned in various other historical records from German-speaking regions during this period.
In the 14th century, a notable figure named Johannes Bischoff was a prominent scholar and rector at the University of Vienna. He lived from around 1340 to 1410 and made significant contributions to the field of theology during his time.
Another early bearer of the Bischoff name was Gottfried Bischoff, a German poet and writer who lived from 1497 to 1560. He is best known for his allegorical work "Teurdank," which was published in 1517 and considered an important literary achievement of the Renaissance era.
In the 17th century, a notable individual named Johann Bischoff (1624-1693) was a German mathematician and astronomer. He made important contributions to the field of celestial mechanics and is regarded as one of the pioneers of modern astronomy.
During the 18th century, the Bischoff name was also associated with the town of Bischofsheim, located in the state of Hesse, Germany. This place name likely derived from the German words "Bischof" (bishop) and "Heim" (home), suggesting a connection between the surname and this particular town.
As the Bischoff name spread throughout Germany and beyond, it was also adopted by several notable figures in various fields, including Johann Nicolaus Bischoff (1749-1831), a German botanist and naturalist, and Theodor Ludwig Wilhelm Bischoff (1807-1882), a renowned German anatomist and embryologist.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Bischoff
Among Census respondents with the surname Bischoff, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.6%) and Two or More Races (2.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Bischoff 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 Bischoff surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.8% · 6,207
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 238
- Two or more races2.3% · 153
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 44
- Black or African American0.4% · 29
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 21
Timeline
Historical Census data for Bischoff
Bischoff 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
#5,077
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,897
+234 bearers (+3.5%)
Per 100,000 2.34
Rank movement Down 242 places
2020
#5,077
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,692
-205 bearers (-3.0%)
Per 100,000 2.24
Rank movement No rank change
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,835 | 6,663 | 2.47 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,077 | 6,897 | 2.34 | +234 bearers (+3.5%) | Down 242 places |
| 2020 | #5,077 | 6,692 | 2.24 | -205 bearers (-3.0%) | No rank change |
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 Bischoff 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 | #5,077 | #5,077 | 0.0% |
| Count | 6,897 | 6,692 | -3.0% |
| Per 100K | 2.34 | 2.24 | -4.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Bischoff bearers went from 6,897 to 6,692 (-3.0% change). The surname held its position in the national ranking, remaining at #5,077.
FAQ
Bischoff surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Bischoff?
Name Census estimates that about 7,674 living Americans carry the surname Bischoff. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 44,664 residents.
How common is Bischoff?
Bischoff ranks #5,077 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.24 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 6,692 people with the surname Bischoff. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (7,674), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.24 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.24 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 Bischoff.
Has Bischoff become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Bischoff went from 6,897 recorded bearers to 6,692. That is a decrease of 205 (-3.0%). In the national ranking it stayed at #5,077.
What does the Census say about the background of Bischoff?
Among Census respondents with the surname Bischoff, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.6%) and Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Bischoff in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.8% (6,207 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Bischoff appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.8%), Hispanic (3.6%), Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Bischoff (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 Bischoff mean?
A German occupational surname referring to a bishop, derived from the Middle High German "bischof" meaning "bishop." 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 Bischoff (2.24 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 Bischoff?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.