2000
#130,443
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 120
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Buhlinger
A Germanic surname derived from a placename or occupational name related to milling or grinding.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 117 Americans carry the last name Buhlinger. That puts it at #154,755 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,929,524 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Buhlinger 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
117
1 in 2,929,524
Census rank
#154,755
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
102
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 102 bearers of the surname Buhlinger in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 154755th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Buhlinger, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.9%) and Hispanic (1.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Buhlinger
The surname BUHLINGER is of German origin, originating in the region of Baden-Württemberg in southwestern Germany. It is believed to have emerged around the 16th century, derived from the Middle High German word "buhl," which referred to a small hill or mound.
The name likely originated as a topographic name, indicating that the earliest bearers of the name lived near or on a small hill or elevated area. It may have also been used as a descriptive name, referring to a person's physical appearance or stature.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name BUHLINGER can be found in the church records of the town of Maulbronn, Baden-Württemberg, where a Johann Buhlinger was mentioned in an entry dated 1586.
In the 17th century, the name appears in various regional records and documents, such as the tax rolls of the village of Vaihingen an der Enz, where a Hans Buhlinger is listed as a landowner in 1632.
Notable individuals with the surname BUHLINGER include Johann Georg Buhlinger (1721-1798), a Baroque-era painter and engraver from the city of Ulm. His works can be found in churches and museums throughout southern Germany.
Another notable figure was Karl Friedrich Buhlinger (1812-1887), a German educator and philosopher who served as the headmaster of the prestigious Evangelical Seminary in Schönthal, Württemberg.
In the late 19th century, a prominent Buhlinger was August Buhlinger (1845-1912), a successful industrialist and entrepreneur who founded the Buhlinger Machinery Works in Esslingen am Neckar, a company that manufactured agricultural equipment and machinery.
During the 20th century, the name gained recognition through the work of Hans Buhlinger (1902-1987), a German architect and urban planner who was instrumental in the reconstruction and redesign of several German cities after World War II.
Lastly, mention should be made of Gerhard Buhlinger (1932-2018), a renowned German classical pianist and music educator who taught at the prestigious Hochschule für Musik und Theater München for over four decades.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Buhlinger
Among Census respondents with the surname Buhlinger, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.9%) and Hispanic (1.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Buhlinger 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 Buhlinger surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.1% · 96
- Two or more races4.9% · 5
- Hispanic or Latino1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Buhlinger
Buhlinger 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
#147,253
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
-8 bearers (-6.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 16,810 places
2020
#154,755
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
-10 bearers (-8.9%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 7,502 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #130,443 | 120 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #147,253 | 112 | 0.04 | -8 bearers (-6.7%) | Down 16,810 places |
| 2020 | #154,755 | 102 | 0.03 | -10 bearers (-8.9%) | Down 7,502 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 Buhlinger 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 | #147,253 | #154,755 | -5.1% |
| Count | 112 | 102 | -8.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -14.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Buhlinger bearers went from 112 to 102 (-8.9% change). The surname moved down 7,502 positions in the national ranking, going from #147,253 to #154,755.
FAQ
Buhlinger surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Buhlinger?
Name Census estimates that about 117 living Americans carry the surname Buhlinger. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,929,524 residents.
How common is Buhlinger?
Buhlinger ranks #154,755 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 102 people with the surname Buhlinger. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (117), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Buhlinger.
Has Buhlinger become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Buhlinger went from 112 recorded bearers to 102. That is a decrease of 10 (-8.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #147,253 to #154,755.
What does the Census say about the background of Buhlinger?
Among Census respondents with the surname Buhlinger, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.9%) and Hispanic (1.0%). 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 Buhlinger in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.1% (96 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Buhlinger appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.1%), Two or More Races (4.9%), Hispanic (1.0%). 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 Buhlinger (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 Buhlinger mean?
A Germanic surname derived from a placename or occupational name related to milling or grinding. 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 Buhlinger (0.03 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 Buhlinger?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.