2000
#12,273
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,325
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.86
Rare Last name
Buch
A German and Jewish (Ashkenazic) toponymic surname derived from places named Buch, meaning "book" or "beech tree."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,485 Americans carry the last name Buch. That puts it at #13,438 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.72 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 137,929 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Buch 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 Buch with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.5K
1 in 137,929
Census rank
#13,438
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,167 bearers of the surname Buch in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.72 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13438th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Buch, the largest self-reported group is White at 76.4%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (12.3%) and Hispanic (7.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Buch
The surname BUCH is believed to have originated in the region of Swabia, located in the southwestern part of present-day Germany. It is derived from the Old High German word "buoh," which means "beech tree" or "beech forest." This suggests that the name may have initially been used to identify people who lived near or worked with beech trees.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname BUCH can be traced back to the 12th century in various historical documents from the Swabian region. One notable example is the mention of a "Rudolfus de Buoch" in a charter from the Benedictine monastery of St. Gallen, dated around 1180.
In the 13th century, the name BUCH appeared in the Codex Hirsaugiensis, a manuscript containing legal documents and records from the Hirsau Abbey in the Black Forest region of Baden-Württemberg. This indicates that the name was well-established among the local population during that time period.
One of the earliest known bearers of the BUCH surname was Konrad Buch, a German sculptor and master builder who lived in the late 13th and early 14th centuries. His most famous work is the ornate choir stalls he created for the Strasbourg Cathedral between 1292 and 1298.
During the 15th century, the BUCH name was also found in various records from the city of Nuremberg, which was a prominent center of trade and craftsmanship in the Holy Roman Empire. One notable individual from this era was Hans Buch, a renowned goldsmith who was active in Nuremberg between 1460 and 1490.
In the 16th century, the BUCH surname gained prominence in the field of Protestant theology with the birth of Samuel Buch (1531-1599), a German Lutheran theologian and reformer who served as the personal chaplain to Prince-Elector Johann Georg of Brandenburg.
Another prominent figure with the BUCH surname was Christian Leopold von Buch (1774-1853), a highly influential German geologist and paleontologist who made significant contributions to the understanding of volcanic rocks and the formation of the Earth's crust.
The surname BUCH has also been associated with various places and locations throughout its history. For example, the town of Buchenbach in Baden-Württemberg is believed to have derived its name from the Old High German word "buocha," meaning "beech forest."
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Buch
Among Census respondents with the surname Buch, the largest self-reported group is White at 76.4%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (12.3%) and Hispanic (7.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Buch 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 Buch surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White76.4% · 1,655
- Asian and Pacific Islander12.3% · 267
- Hispanic or Latino7.0% · 152
- Two or more races2.4% · 52
- Black or African American1.3% · 29
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 12
Timeline
Historical Census data for Buch
Buch 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
#12,752
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,420
+95 bearers (+4.1%)
Per 100,000 0.82
Rank movement Down 479 places
2020
#13,438
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,167
-253 bearers (-10.5%)
Per 100,000 0.72
Rank movement Down 686 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,273 | 2,325 | 0.86 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,752 | 2,420 | 0.82 | +95 bearers (+4.1%) | Down 479 places |
| 2020 | #13,438 | 2,167 | 0.72 | -253 bearers (-10.5%) | Down 686 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 Buch 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 | #12,752 | #13,438 | -5.4% |
| Count | 2,420 | 2,167 | -10.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.82 | 0.72 | -11.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Buch bearers went from 2,420 to 2,167 (-10.5% change). The surname moved down 686 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,752 to #13,438.
FAQ
Buch surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Buch?
Name Census estimates that about 2,485 living Americans carry the surname Buch. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 137,929 residents.
How common is Buch?
Buch ranks #13,438 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.72 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 2,167 people with the surname Buch. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,485), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.72 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.72 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 Buch.
Has Buch become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Buch went from 2,420 recorded bearers to 2,167. That is a decrease of 253 (-10.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #12,752 to #13,438.
What does the Census say about the background of Buch?
Among Census respondents with the surname Buch, the largest self-reported group is White at 76.4%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (12.3%) and Hispanic (7.0%). 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 Buch in the 2020 Census, accounting for 76.4% (1,655 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Buch appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (76.4%), Asian/Pacific Islander (12.3%), Hispanic (7.0%). 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 Buch (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 Buch mean?
A German and Jewish (Ashkenazic) toponymic surname derived from places named Buch, meaning "book" or "beech tree." 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 Buch (0.72 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 Buch?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.