2000
#8,484
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,576
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.33
Rare Last name
Blatt
A topographic surname referring to someone living near a flat area, leaf, or patch of arable land.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,832 Americans carry the last name Blatt. That puts it at #9,348 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.12 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 89,445 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Blatt 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
3.8K
1 in 89,445
Census rank
#9,348
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,342 bearers of the surname Blatt in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.12 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9348th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Blatt, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (1.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Blatt
The surname Blatt originated in Germany, and its earliest recorded use dates back to the 13th century. The name is derived from the Middle High German word "blat," meaning "leaf" or "blade," and it was likely an occupational surname given to a maker or seller of blades or leaf-shaped objects.
In the 14th century, the name appeared in various records and manuscripts across Germany, such as the Codex Diplomaticus Brandenburgensis and the Urkundenbuch der Stadt Strassburg. These records document individuals with the surname Blatt residing in various regions, including Brandenburg, Saxony, and Alsace.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Blatt was Hans Blatt, a blacksmith from Nuremberg, who was mentioned in the city's guild records in the late 15th century. Another notable figure was Johann Blatt, a printer and publisher from Wittenberg, who lived between 1490 and 1557.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the surname Blatt spread across other parts of Europe as German settlers migrated to different regions. In the Netherlands, for instance, the name was recorded as "Bladt" or "Blatt," while in France, it appeared as "Blat" or "Blatt."
One of the most famous individuals with the surname Blatt was the Austrian composer and conductor Eduard Blatt, who lived from 1808 to 1892. He was renowned for his operas and compositions, which were performed throughout Europe during the 19th century.
Another notable figure was the German-American painter and printmaker Boris Blatt, who was born in 1906 in Odessa, Russia, and later immigrated to the United States. His works are part of the collections of various museums, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Museum of Modern Art.
The surname Blatt can also be traced to place names in Germany, such as Blattendorf (now part of Gerswalde) in Brandenburg and Blattenberg in Baden-Württemberg. These place names likely derived from the same root word as the surname, referring to areas with an abundance of leaves or blades of grass.
Other notable individuals with the surname Blatt include the German writer and journalist Rudolf Blatt (1831-1898), the American philosopher and educator Maurice Blatt (1903-1986), and the British film director and producer Harold Blatt (1904-1992).
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Blatt
Among Census respondents with the surname Blatt, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (1.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Blatt 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 Blatt surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.4% · 3,120
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 95
- Two or more races1.9% · 64
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 32
- Black or African American0.5% · 17
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 14
Timeline
Historical Census data for Blatt
Blatt 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
#8,244
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,020
+444 bearers (+12.4%)
Per 100,000 1.36
Rank movement Up 240 places
2020
#9,348
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,342
-678 bearers (-16.9%)
Per 100,000 1.12
Rank movement Down 1,104 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,484 | 3,576 | 1.33 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,244 | 4,020 | 1.36 | +444 bearers (+12.4%) | Up 240 places |
| 2020 | #9,348 | 3,342 | 1.12 | -678 bearers (-16.9%) | Down 1,104 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 Blatt 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 | #8,244 | #9,348 | -13.4% |
| Count | 4,020 | 3,342 | -16.9% |
| Per 100K | 1.36 | 1.12 | -17.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Blatt bearers went from 4,020 to 3,342 (-16.9% change). The surname moved down 1,104 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,244 to #9,348.
FAQ
Blatt surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Blatt?
Name Census estimates that about 3,832 living Americans carry the surname Blatt. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 89,445 residents.
How common is Blatt?
Blatt ranks #9,348 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.12 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 3,342 people with the surname Blatt. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,832), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.12 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.12 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Blatt.
Has Blatt become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Blatt went from 4,020 recorded bearers to 3,342. That is a decrease of 678 (-16.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,244 to #9,348.
What does the Census say about the background of Blatt?
Among Census respondents with the surname Blatt, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (1.9%). 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 Blatt in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.4% (3,120 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Blatt appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.4%), Hispanic (2.8%), Two or More Races (1.9%). 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 Blatt (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 Blatt mean?
A topographic surname referring to someone living near a flat area, leaf, or patch of arable land. 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 Blatt (1.12 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 common is the surname Blatt?
Want to know how many people have the surname Blatt? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.