2000
#9,475
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,147
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.17
Rare Last name
Carstens
A patronymic surname derived from the Scandinavian personal name Karsten, meaning "son of Christian."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,551 Americans carry the last name Carstens. That puts it at #9,952 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 96,523 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Carstens 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
3.6K
1 in 96,523
Census rank
#9,952
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,097 bearers of the surname Carstens in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9952nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Carstens, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.1%) and Hispanic (4.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Carstens
The surname Carstens is of Germanic origin and can be traced back to northern Germany and the Netherlands. It is derived from the Old German personal name Carsten or Karsten, which itself is a contracted form of the name Christen or Christian. The name was likely first adopted as a surname by the descendants or followers of someone bearing the given name Carsten or Karsten.
The earliest recorded instances of the Carstens surname date back to the 16th century in regions such as Holstein, Schleswig, and Friesland. One of the earliest documented examples is Hans Carstens, who was mentioned in records from the city of Flensburg, Schleswig-Holstein, in the year 1524.
In the Netherlands, the name was sometimes spelled as Carstensz or Carstensen, reflecting regional variations in spelling and pronunciation. One notable bearer of the name was Hendrik Carstensz, a Dutch navigator and explorer who lived from around 1580 to 1628. He is best known for his explorations of the coastline of western and northern Australia, which he charted in the early 17th century.
Another prominent figure with the Carstens surname was Sir Edgar Carstens, a British military officer and colonial administrator who lived from 1857 to 1932. He served as the Governor of Tasmania from 1909 to 1913 and later as the Governor of the Leeward Islands from 1913 to 1917.
In the field of art, the name is associated with Asmus Jacob Carstens, a Danish-German painter and illustrator who lived from 1754 to 1798. He is regarded as one of the leading figures of the Neoclassical movement in Germany and is particularly known for his illustrations inspired by Greek mythology and classical literature.
Another notable bearer of the Carstens surname was Johann August Ephraim Gotthold Carstens, a German theologian and scholar who lived from 1752 to 1830. He was a prominent figure in the Lutheran Church and served as a professor of theology at the University of Rostock.
While the Carstens surname has its roots in northern Germany and the Netherlands, it has since spread to other parts of Europe and beyond, with bearers of the name found in countries such as the United States, Canada, and Australia.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Carstens
Among Census respondents with the surname Carstens, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.1%) and Hispanic (4.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Carstens 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 Carstens surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.6% · 2,805
- Two or more races4.1% · 127
- Hispanic or Latino4.0% · 124
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 24
- Black or African American0.3% · 10
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 7
Timeline
Historical Census data for Carstens
Carstens 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
#10,095
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,190
+43 bearers (+1.4%)
Per 100,000 1.08
Rank movement Down 620 places
2020
#9,952
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,097
-93 bearers (-2.9%)
Per 100,000 1.04
Rank movement Up 143 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,475 | 3,147 | 1.17 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,095 | 3,190 | 1.08 | +43 bearers (+1.4%) | Down 620 places |
| 2020 | #9,952 | 3,097 | 1.04 | -93 bearers (-2.9%) | Up 143 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 Carstens 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 | #10,095 | #9,952 | 1.4% |
| Count | 3,190 | 3,097 | -2.9% |
| Per 100K | 1.08 | 1.04 | -4.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Carstens bearers went from 3,190 to 3,097 (-2.9% change). The surname moved up 143 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,095 to #9,952.
FAQ
Carstens surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Carstens?
Name Census estimates that about 3,551 living Americans carry the surname Carstens. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 96,523 residents.
How common is Carstens?
Carstens ranks #9,952 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 3,097 people with the surname Carstens. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,551), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Carstens.
Has Carstens become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Carstens went from 3,190 recorded bearers to 3,097. That is a decrease of 93 (-2.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #10,095 to #9,952.
What does the Census say about the background of Carstens?
Among Census respondents with the surname Carstens, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.1%) and Hispanic (4.0%). 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 Carstens in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.6% (2,805 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Carstens appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.6%), Two or More Races (4.1%), Hispanic (4.0%). 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 Carstens (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 Carstens mean?
A patronymic surname derived from the Scandinavian personal name Karsten, meaning "son of Christian." 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 Carstens (1.04 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 Carstens?
See how many people are called Carstens on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.