2000
#136,783
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Buhring
A German surname denoting one who lives near a boundary or border.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 128 Americans carry the last name Buhring. That puts it at #147,954 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,677,768 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Buhring 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
128
1 in 2,677,768
Census rank
#147,954
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
112
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 112 bearers of the surname Buhring in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 147954th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Buhring, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (8.0%) and Two or More Races (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Buhring
The surname Buhring has its origins in Germany, tracing back to the 12th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old German word "buhr," which means "neighbor" or "villager." This suggests that the name was originally used to identify someone who lived in a particular village or community.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Buhring dates back to the 13th century, where it was mentioned in a document from the town of Dortmund in the Ruhr region of Germany. The document referred to a person named Johann Buhring, who was a local landowner.
In the 15th century, the name Buhring appeared in several historical records from the city of Hamburg, indicating that the name had spread to different parts of northern Germany. One notable individual from this time was Hans Buhring, a merchant who traded goods along the Baltic Sea.
The Buhring family also had a presence in the town of Lübeck, a prominent Hanseatic city in the late medieval period. Records from the 16th century mention a Buhring family involved in the city's thriving maritime trade.
As the name spread across Germany, variations in spelling emerged, including Buehring, Büring, and Buhren. These variations often reflected regional dialects and differences in pronunciation.
In the 18th century, a notable figure with the surname Buhring was Johann Georg Buhring, a German philosopher and theologian born in 1726. He was known for his writings on ethics and natural law.
Another significant individual was Friedrich Wilhelm Buhring, born in 1783, who was a renowned German architect and urban planner. He designed several notable buildings in Berlin and was influential in shaping the city's urban landscape.
During the 19th century, the Buhring name became more widespread across Germany and began to appear in other parts of Europe. One example is Carl Buhring, a German-born artist who lived from 1825 to 1898 and was known for his landscape paintings.
While the surname Buhring is predominantly associated with Germany, it has also been found in other countries, likely due to migration and intermarriage over the centuries. However, its roots can be traced back to the German regions, reflecting the rich history and cultural heritage of this name.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Buhring
Among Census respondents with the surname Buhring, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (8.0%) and Two or More Races (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Buhring 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 Buhring surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.4% · 99
- Hispanic or Latino8.0% · 9
- Two or more races1.8% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Buhring
Buhring 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
#142,108
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
+4 bearers (+3.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 5,325 places
2020
#147,954
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
-5 bearers (-4.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 5,846 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #136,783 | 113 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #142,108 | 117 | 0.04 | +4 bearers (+3.5%) | Down 5,325 places |
| 2020 | #147,954 | 112 | 0.04 | -5 bearers (-4.3%) | Down 5,846 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 Buhring 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 | #142,108 | #147,954 | -4.1% |
| Count | 117 | 112 | -4.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -6.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Buhring bearers went from 117 to 112 (-4.3% change). The surname moved down 5,846 positions in the national ranking, going from #142,108 to #147,954.
FAQ
Buhring surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Buhring?
Name Census estimates that about 128 living Americans carry the surname Buhring. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,677,768 residents.
How common is Buhring?
Buhring ranks #147,954 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 112 people with the surname Buhring. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (128), 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 Buhring.
Has Buhring become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Buhring went from 117 recorded bearers to 112. That is a decrease of 5 (-4.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #142,108 to #147,954.
What does the Census say about the background of Buhring?
Among Census respondents with the surname Buhring, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (8.0%) and Two or More Races (1.8%). 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 Buhring in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.4% (99 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Buhring appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.4%), Hispanic (8.0%), Two or More Races (1.8%). 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 Buhring (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 Buhring mean?
A German surname denoting one who lives near a boundary or border. 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 Buhring (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 common is the surname Buhring?
You can see how common the surname Buhring is on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.