2010
#158,432
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.03
Very Rare Last name
Buthe
A variant spelling of the German surname Büthe, denoting someone from a house or cottage.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 135 Americans carry the last name Buthe. That puts it at #143,511 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,538,921 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Buthe 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
135
1 in 2,538,921
Census rank
#143,511
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
118
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 118 bearers of the surname Buthe in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 143511th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Buthe, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (1.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Buthe
The surname BUTHE is believed to have originated in Germany during the medieval period, specifically in the region of Lower Saxony. It is thought to be derived from the Old German word "bude," meaning a small hut or dwelling. This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who lived in a modest abode or a small farmhouse.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name BUTHE can be found in the Bremisches Urkundenbuch (Bremen Deeds Book), a collection of historical documents from the city of Bremen, dating back to the 13th century. In this record, a certain "Johannes Buthe" is mentioned as a witness to a land transaction in the year 1273.
Another notable historical reference to the name BUTHE comes from the Lüneburg Zehntregister (Lüneburg Tithe Register), a medieval tax record from the city of Lüneburg in Lower Saxony. This document, dating back to the 14th century, lists several individuals with the surname BUTHE as landowners or taxpayers in the region.
In the 16th century, a prominent figure bearing the name BUTHE was Johann Buthe (1492-1548), a German Protestant reformer and theologian. He was a close associate of Martin Luther and played a significant role in the Reformation movement in northern Germany.
Another individual of historical significance was Catharina Buthe (1616-1700), a German author and educator. She was one of the first women in Germany to publish works on educational theory and pedagogy, making significant contributions to the development of early childhood education.
In the 18th century, Johann Christian Buthe (1716-1786) was a renowned German architect and master builder. He designed several notable buildings in the Baroque and Rococo styles, including churches and palaces, primarily in the region of Saxony-Anhalt.
The name BUTHE has also been associated with various place names and geographic locations throughout Germany. For example, the village of Buthe in Lower Saxony, as well as the Buthebach river, which flows through the region, likely derived their names from the surname itself or its linguistic origins.
While the surname BUTHE is not among the most common in Germany today, it has a rich historical legacy spanning centuries and has been borne by notable figures in various fields, from theology and education to architecture and reformation movements.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Buthe
Among Census respondents with the surname Buthe, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (1.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Buthe 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 Buthe surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.2% · 110
- Two or more races3.4% · 4
- Hispanic or Latino1.7% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Buthe
Buthe appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#143,511
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 118
+16 bearers (+15.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 14,921 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #158,432 | 102 | 0.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #143,511 | 118 | 0.04 | +16 bearers (+15.7%) | Up 14,921 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 Buthe 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 | #158,432 | #143,511 | 9.4% |
| Count | 102 | 118 | 15.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.04 | 31.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Buthe bearers went from 102 to 118 (+15.7% change). The surname moved up 14,921 positions in the national ranking, going from #158,432 to #143,511.
FAQ
Buthe surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Buthe?
Name Census estimates that about 135 living Americans carry the surname Buthe. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,538,921 residents.
How common is Buthe?
Buthe ranks #143,511 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 118 people with the surname Buthe. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (135), 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 Buthe.
Has Buthe become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Buthe went from 102 recorded bearers to 118. That is an increase of 16 (+15.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #158,432 to #143,511.
What does the Census say about the background of Buthe?
Among Census respondents with the surname Buthe, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (1.7%). 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 Buthe in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.2% (110 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Buthe appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.2%), Two or More Races (3.4%), Hispanic (1.7%). 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 Buthe (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 Buthe mean?
A variant spelling of the German surname Büthe, denoting someone from a house or cottage. 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 Buthe (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 have the surname Buthe?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.