2000
#3,501
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,338
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.46
Uncommon Last name
Brandenburg
A German toponymic surname referring to someone from the Brandenburg region in northeastern Germany.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 10,324 Americans carry the last name Brandenburg. That puts it at #3,840 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.01 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 33,200 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Brandenburg 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
10K
1 in 33,200
Census rank
#3,840
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
9.0K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 9,003 bearers of the surname Brandenburg in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.01 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3840th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Brandenburg, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (3.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Brandenburg
The surname Brandenburg originates from the German state of Brandenburg, located in the northeastern part of the country. The name is derived from the Slavic word "Brennabor," meaning "burned village" or "burned land," referring to the practice of clearing land for cultivation by burning vegetation.
The earliest recorded instances of the Brandenburg surname can be traced back to the 12th century, when the Margraviate of Brandenburg was established as a frontier territory of the Holy Roman Empire. During this period, the name was primarily associated with nobles and landowners who held titles and properties within the region.
One of the earliest and most notable bearers of the Brandenburg surname was Albert the Bear (c. 1100-1170), the first Margrave of Brandenburg. He played a significant role in the Germanization of the Slavic territories east of the Elbe River and is considered the founder of the Ascanian dynasty, which ruled over Brandenburg for nearly two centuries.
Another prominent figure with the Brandenburg surname was Margrave John I of Brandenburg (1213-1266), also known as John I the Troubadour. He was a renowned patron of the arts and a skilled poet, contributing to the flourishing of courtly love literature during the Middle Ages.
During the 16th century, the Brandenburg name gained further prominence with the rise of the House of Hohenzollern, which ruled over Brandenburg-Prussia and later the Kingdom of Prussia. Notable figures from this dynasty include Elector Frederick William (1620-1688), known as the Great Elector, and King Frederick II (1712-1786), also called Frederick the Great, who significantly expanded Prussian territories and influenced the Enlightenment in Europe.
The Brandenburg surname also appears in various historical documents and records from the Middle Ages onwards, including the Matriculation Roll of the University of Rostock, which dates back to the 15th century, and the chronicles of the Teutonic Knights, who played a significant role in the Christianization and colonization of the Baltic region.
Other notable individuals bearing the Brandenburg surname include the German philosopher Walter Benjamin (1892-1940), the American actress Anson Burlingame (1804-1870), and the British historian and author Francis Brandenburg (1914-2012).
While the Brandenburg surname is primarily associated with German and Prussian nobility and landowners, it has also been adopted by individuals from other regions and backgrounds, reflecting the various historical and cultural influences that have shaped its evolution over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Brandenburg
Among Census respondents with the surname Brandenburg, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (3.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Brandenburg 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 Brandenburg surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.8% · 8,268
- Two or more races3.4% · 309
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 294
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 70
- Black or African American0.5% · 43
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 19
Timeline
Historical Census data for Brandenburg
Brandenburg 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
#3,691
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,624
+286 bearers (+3.1%)
Per 100,000 3.26
Rank movement Down 190 places
2020
#3,840
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,003
-621 bearers (-6.5%)
Per 100,000 3.01
Rank movement Down 149 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,501 | 9,338 | 3.46 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,691 | 9,624 | 3.26 | +286 bearers (+3.1%) | Down 190 places |
| 2020 | #3,840 | 9,003 | 3.01 | -621 bearers (-6.5%) | Down 149 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 Brandenburg 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 | #3,691 | #3,840 | -4.0% |
| Count | 9,624 | 9,003 | -6.5% |
| Per 100K | 3.26 | 3.01 | -7.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Brandenburg bearers went from 9,624 to 9,003 (-6.5% change). The surname moved down 149 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,691 to #3,840.
FAQ
Brandenburg surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Brandenburg?
Name Census estimates that about 10,324 living Americans carry the surname Brandenburg. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 33,200 residents.
How common is Brandenburg?
Brandenburg ranks #3,840 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.01 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 9,003 people with the surname Brandenburg. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (10,324), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.01 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.01 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Brandenburg.
Has Brandenburg become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Brandenburg went from 9,624 recorded bearers to 9,003. That is a decrease of 621 (-6.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,691 to #3,840.
What does the Census say about the background of Brandenburg?
Among Census respondents with the surname Brandenburg, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (3.3%). 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 Brandenburg in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.8% (8,268 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Brandenburg appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.8%), Two or More Races (3.4%), Hispanic (3.3%). 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 Brandenburg (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 Brandenburg mean?
A German toponymic surname referring to someone from the Brandenburg region in northeastern 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 Brandenburg (3.01 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 Brandenburg?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.