Find out how popular the last name Burghardt is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Burghardt.
An old German locational surname referring to someone from a fortified place, castle or borough.
Burghardt, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Burghardt surname is from the 2010 census data.
Burghardt is the 29740th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.
The Burghardt surname appeared 791 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Burghardt.
We can also compare 2010 data for Burghardt to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.
2010 | 2000 | Change (%) | |
---|---|---|---|
Rank | 29740 | 20446 | 37.04% |
Count | 791 | 1,207 | -41.64% |
Proportion per 100k | 0.27 | 0.45 | -50.00% |
The surname Burghardt originates from Germany and emerged during the late medieval period, around the 12th-13th centuries. It is derived from the German words "burg", meaning castle or fortified town, and "hart", meaning hardy or brave. The name likely referred to someone who lived near a castle or was associated with defending or maintaining a fortified settlement.
The earliest recorded instances of the name can be traced back to the southern regions of Germany, particularly in areas like Bavaria and Swabia. Historical records from the 14th century mention individuals with the surname Burghardt residing in towns and villages around these regions.
One notable early reference to the name appears in a 1412 document from the city of Augsburg, which lists a certain Hans Burghardt as a merchant and member of the local guild. This suggests that by the 15th century, the Burghardt name had already gained some prominence within urban centers of southern Germany.
In the 16th century, the Burghardt name is found in various church and municipal records across different parts of Germany, indicating its spread beyond the initial regions of origin. For instance, a Johann Burghardt is mentioned as a landowner in the town of Rothenburg ob der Tauber in the mid-1500s.
One of the earliest known bearers of the Burghardt name was Matthias Burghardt, a German monk and theologian who lived from 1529 to 1598. He was a prominent figure in the Lutheran Reformation and authored several theological works during his lifetime.
Another notable Burghardt was Johann Christoph Burghardt, a German composer and organist who lived from 1705 to 1758. He is known for his contributions to the development of the chorale prelude, a form of organ composition based on Lutheran hymn tunes.
In the 19th century, the name gained further recognition with the birth of Johann Rudolf Burghardt (1829-1897), a German architect and urban planner who designed several notable buildings in Berlin and other German cities.
One of the most famous individuals with the Burghardt surname was Rudolf Burghardt, a German World War II flying ace who served in the Luftwaffe. Born in 1915, he was credited with shooting down over 100 enemy aircraft during his military career and received numerous honors, including the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross.
We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Burghardt.
The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:
For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Burghardt was:
Race/Ethnicity | Percentage | Total Occurrences |
---|---|---|
Non-Hispanic White Only | 90.52% | 716 |
Non-Hispanic Black Only | 2.65% | 21 |
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only | (S)% | (S) |
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native | (S)% | (S) |
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races | 3.16% | 25 |
Hispanic Origin | 2.78% | 22 |
Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.
Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Burghardt has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.
2010 | 2000 | Change (%) | |
---|---|---|---|
White | 90.52% | 92.13% | -1.76% |
Black | 2.65% | 3.15% | -17.24% |
Asian and Pacific Islander | (S)% | (S)% | (S)% |
American Indian and Alaskan Native | (S)% | (S)% | (S)% |
Two or More Races | 3.16% | 2.40% | 27.34% |
Hispanic | 2.78% | 1.66% | 50.45% |
The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.
The history and meaning of the name Burghardt was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.
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<a href="http://namecensus.com/last-names/burghardt-surname-popularity/">Burghardt last name popularity, history, and meaning</a>
"Burghardt last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on July 7, 2025. http://namecensus.com/last-names/burghardt-surname-popularity/.
"Burghardt last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/burghardt-surname-popularity/. Accessed 7 July, 2025
Burghardt last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/burghardt-surname-popularity/.
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