2000
#7,996
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,834
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.42
Rare Last name
Blumenthal
A German topographic surname referring to someone living near a flowering valley or dale.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,948 Americans carry the last name Blumenthal. That puts it at #9,117 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.15 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 86,817 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Blumenthal 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 Blumenthal with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.9K
1 in 86,817
Census rank
#9,117
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,443 bearers of the surname Blumenthal in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.15 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9117th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Blumenthal, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.2%) and Two or More Races (2.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Blumenthal
The surname Blumenthal originated in Germany and is derived from the German words "blumen" meaning "flower" and "thal" meaning "valley". It is a topographic name referring to someone who lived in a valley or area where flowers grew abundantly.
The earliest recorded instance of the surname Blumenthal can be traced back to the 13th century in the region of Bavaria, Germany. The name was likely adopted by individuals living in areas with picturesque landscapes and fertile valleys filled with wildflowers.
In the 15th century, the name Blumenthal appeared in records from the town of Nuremberg, where a family of merchants and traders bearing the surname resided. One notable figure from this time was Hans Blumenthal, a successful merchant born in 1472 who established trade routes throughout Europe.
During the 16th century, the Blumenthal name spread to other parts of Germany, including the regions of Saxony and Silesia. In 1583, a record mentions a Johann Blumenthal, a respected scholar and theologian from the town of Wittenberg.
As people migrated across Europe, the Blumenthal name found its way to other countries. In the 17th century, a family of Blumenthals settled in the Netherlands, where the name was adapted to the Dutch spelling "Bloemendaal". One prominent member was Pieter Bloemendaal, a renowned artist born in 1658 who specialized in landscape paintings.
In the 19th century, several Blumenthals made their mark in various fields. Heinrich Blumenthal, born in 1805, was a German philosopher and writer known for his works on ethics and moral philosophy. Meanwhile, Felix Blumenthal, born in 1853, was a prominent German banker and financier who played a significant role in the industrialization of Germany.
The Blumenthal surname has also been associated with notable individuals in more recent times, such as Richard Blumenthal, born in 1946, who served as a United States Senator from Connecticut, and Sidney Blumenthal, born in 1948, an American journalist and former political aide to President Bill Clinton.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Blumenthal
Among Census respondents with the surname Blumenthal, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.2%) and Two or More Races (2.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Blumenthal 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 Blumenthal surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.0% · 3,169
- Hispanic or Latino4.2% · 145
- Two or more races2.2% · 77
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 24
- Black or African American0.7% · 23
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Blumenthal
Blumenthal 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
#8,914
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,673
-161 bearers (-4.2%)
Per 100,000 1.25
Rank movement Down 918 places
2020
#9,117
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,443
-230 bearers (-6.3%)
Per 100,000 1.15
Rank movement Down 203 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,996 | 3,834 | 1.42 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,914 | 3,673 | 1.25 | -161 bearers (-4.2%) | Down 918 places |
| 2020 | #9,117 | 3,443 | 1.15 | -230 bearers (-6.3%) | Down 203 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 Blumenthal 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 | #8,914 | #9,117 | -2.3% |
| Count | 3,673 | 3,443 | -6.3% |
| Per 100K | 1.25 | 1.15 | -7.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Blumenthal bearers went from 3,673 to 3,443 (-6.3% change). The surname moved down 203 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,914 to #9,117.
FAQ
Blumenthal surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Blumenthal?
Name Census estimates that about 3,948 living Americans carry the surname Blumenthal. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 86,817 residents.
How common is Blumenthal?
Blumenthal ranks #9,117 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.15 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 3,443 people with the surname Blumenthal. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,948), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.15 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.15 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 Blumenthal.
Has Blumenthal become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Blumenthal went from 3,673 recorded bearers to 3,443. That is a decrease of 230 (-6.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,914 to #9,117.
What does the Census say about the background of Blumenthal?
Among Census respondents with the surname Blumenthal, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.2%) and Two or More Races (2.2%). 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 Blumenthal in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.0% (3,169 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Blumenthal appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.0%), Hispanic (4.2%), Two or More Races (2.2%). 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 Blumenthal (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 Blumenthal mean?
A German topographic surname referring to someone living near a flowering valley or dale. 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 Blumenthal (1.15 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 Blumenthal?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.