2000
#134,037
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 116
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Buckheister
A German surname meaning a person from a place called "Buckheist" or a variant spelling.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 131 Americans carry the last name Buckheister. That puts it at #146,495 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,616,445 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Buckheister 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
131
1 in 2,616,445
Census rank
#146,495
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
114
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 114 bearers of the surname Buckheister in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 146495th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Buckheister, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.5%) and Hispanic (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Buckheister
The surname Buckheister is of German origin, originating in the late 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the combination of the German words "Buch" meaning "beech" and "Heister" meaning "planter" or "nursery worker." This suggests that the name was likely given to someone who worked in a beech tree nursery or plantation.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Buckheister can be found in the village of Oberkirchen, located in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. In 1587, a man named Hans Buckheister was listed in the local tax records as a resident of the village.
The name Buckheister also appears in several other historical documents from the 17th and 18th centuries. For example, in 1649, a Johann Buckheister is mentioned in the church records of the town of Simmern, also in Rhineland-Palatinate. Additionally, in 1734, a Maria Elisabetha Buckheister was recorded as being born in the town of Kirchheimbolanden.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the surname Buckheister. One such person was Johann Georg Buckheister, a German theologian and philosopher who lived from 1683 to 1753. He was a professor at the University of Jena and published several works on theology and philosophy.
Another notable Buckheister was Friedrich Wilhelm Buckheister, a German painter who lived from 1794 to 1865. He is known for his landscape paintings and was a member of the Düsseldorf School of Painting.
In the 19th century, a man named Karl Buckheister, born in 1823, was a prominent businessman and industrialist in the city of Frankfurt am Main. He founded the Buckheister & Co. company, which manufactured machines and tools.
Another individual with this surname was Wilhelm Buckheister, born in 1867, who was a German architect and urban planner. He played a significant role in the development of the city of Cologne during the early 20th century.
Lastly, Heinrich Buckheister, born in 1902, was a German soldier who served in the Wehrmacht during World War II. He was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross, a prestigious military decoration, for his service on the Eastern Front.
While the surname Buckheister may not be as common as some others, it has a rich history and has been borne by individuals from various walks of life throughout the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Buckheister
Among Census respondents with the surname Buckheister, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.5%) and Hispanic (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Buckheister 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 Buckheister surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.7% · 108
- Two or more races3.5% · 4
- Hispanic or Latino0.9% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Buckheister
Buckheister 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
#150,452
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 109
-7 bearers (-6.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 16,415 places
2020
#146,495
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
+5 bearers (+4.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 3,957 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #134,037 | 116 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #150,452 | 109 | 0.04 | -7 bearers (-6.0%) | Down 16,415 places |
| 2020 | #146,495 | 114 | 0.04 | +5 bearers (+4.6%) | Up 3,957 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 Buckheister 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 | #150,452 | #146,495 | 2.6% |
| Count | 109 | 114 | 4.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -4.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Buckheister bearers went from 109 to 114 (+4.6% change). The surname moved up 3,957 positions in the national ranking, going from #150,452 to #146,495.
FAQ
Buckheister surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Buckheister?
Name Census estimates that about 131 living Americans carry the surname Buckheister. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,616,445 residents.
How common is Buckheister?
Buckheister ranks #146,495 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 114 people with the surname Buckheister. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (131), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Buckheister.
Has Buckheister become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Buckheister went from 109 recorded bearers to 114. That is an increase of 5 (+4.6%). In the national ranking it rose from #150,452 to #146,495.
What does the Census say about the background of Buckheister?
Among Census respondents with the surname Buckheister, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.5%) and Hispanic (0.9%). 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 Buckheister in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.7% (108 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Buckheister appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.7%), Two or More Races (3.5%), Hispanic (0.9%). 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 Buckheister (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 Buckheister mean?
A German surname meaning a person from a place called "Buckheist" or a variant spelling. 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 Buckheister (0.04 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 are called Buckheister?
Want to know how many people have the surname Buckheister? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.