2000
#150,436
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 100
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Bultmann
A German surname possibly derived from a place name or an occupational name related to bolts or nails.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 124 Americans carry the last name Bultmann. That puts it at #150,935 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,764,148 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Bultmann 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
124
1 in 2,764,148
Census rank
#150,935
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
108
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 108 bearers of the surname Bultmann in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 150935th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Bultmann, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.6%) and Hispanic (1.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Bultmann
The surname Bultmann is of German origin, specifically from the northern region of Lower Saxony. It is believed to have emerged sometime in the Middle Ages, likely between the 11th and 13th centuries. The name is derived from the Old German words "bulte" or "bult", meaning a small hill or mound, and "mann", which translates to man or person. This suggests that the surname Bultmann may have originally referred to someone who lived near or on a small hill or mound.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Bultmann can be found in the Bremisches Urkundenbuch, a collection of historical documents from the city of Bremen, dating back to the 13th century. In these records, a certain "Henricus Bultmann" is mentioned, though no specific dates are provided. Additionally, variations of the spelling, such as "Bultman" and "Bultemannus", have been documented in various medieval records from the region.
In the late 16th century, a notable figure named Hans Bultmann (c. 1570 - 1645) was a prominent merchant and council member in the city of Lübeck, one of the principal cities of the Hanseatic League. His name appears in various municipal records and accounts from that time period. Another individual of note was Johann Bultmann (1718 - 1796), a Lutheran theologian and author from Westphalia, who published several works on religious subjects.
During the 19th century, the name Bultmann gained further recognition with the birth of Rudolf Bultmann (1884 - 1976), a highly influential German theologian and scholar of the New Testament. His groundbreaking work on demythologizing the New Testament texts had a significant impact on modern biblical interpretation and hermeneutics.
Other notable individuals with the surname Bultmann include Karl Bultmann (1834 - 1912), a German jurist and legal scholar, and Ernst Bultmann (1895 - 1962), a German architect and urban planner who designed several notable buildings and urban developments in Berlin in the early 20th century.
While the surname Bultmann has its roots in northern Germany, it has since spread to other parts of the world through migration and diaspora, though it remains relatively uncommon outside of its original region of origin.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Bultmann
Among Census respondents with the surname Bultmann, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.6%) and Hispanic (1.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Bultmann 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 Bultmann surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.7% · 99
- Two or more races4.6% · 5
- Hispanic or Latino1.9% · 2
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Bultmann
Bultmann 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
#143,149
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 116
+16 bearers (+16.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 7,287 places
2020
#150,935
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 108
-8 bearers (-6.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 7,786 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #150,436 | 100 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #143,149 | 116 | 0.04 | +16 bearers (+16.0%) | Up 7,287 places |
| 2020 | #150,935 | 108 | 0.04 | -8 bearers (-6.9%) | Down 7,786 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 Bultmann 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 | #143,149 | #150,935 | -5.4% |
| Count | 116 | 108 | -6.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -9.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Bultmann bearers went from 116 to 108 (-6.9% change). The surname moved down 7,786 positions in the national ranking, going from #143,149 to #150,935.
FAQ
Bultmann surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Bultmann?
Name Census estimates that about 124 living Americans carry the surname Bultmann. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,764,148 residents.
How common is Bultmann?
Bultmann ranks #150,935 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 108 people with the surname Bultmann. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (124), 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 Bultmann.
Has Bultmann become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Bultmann went from 116 recorded bearers to 108. That is a decrease of 8 (-6.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #143,149 to #150,935.
What does the Census say about the background of Bultmann?
Among Census respondents with the surname Bultmann, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.6%) and Hispanic (1.9%). 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 Bultmann in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.7% (99 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Bultmann appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.7%), Two or More Races (4.6%), Hispanic (1.9%). 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 Bultmann (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 Bultmann mean?
A German surname possibly derived from a place name or an occupational name related to bolts or nails. 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 Bultmann (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 Bultmann?
Find out how many Americans have the surname Bultmann on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.