2000
#86,657
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 200
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.07
Very Rare Last name
Chmelar
A surname of Czech origin meaning someone who cultivated or traded hops.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 210 Americans carry the last name Chmelar. That puts it at #104,276 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.06 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,632,164 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Chmelar 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
210
1 in 1,632,164
Census rank
#104,276
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
183
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 183 bearers of the surname Chmelar in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.06 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 104276th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Chmelar, the largest self-reported group is White at 100.0%.
Origin
Meaning and origin of Chmelar
The surname Chmelar is of Czech origin, originating from the region of Bohemia, which is now part of the Czech Republic. The name can be traced back to the 14th century, derived from the Czech word "chmel," meaning hops, which was an important crop in the region.
Chmelar was likely an occupational surname, given to individuals who were involved in the cultivation, processing, or trading of hops, a key ingredient in the brewing of beer. It is believed that some of the earliest records of the name can be found in medieval documents and registers from the towns and villages around Prague and other parts of Bohemia.
One of the earliest known mentions of the name Chmelar can be found in the Velká Bíteš town records from the year 1457, where a certain Jan Chmelar is listed as a landowner. Another historical reference is the appearance of the name in the Codex Diplomaticus et Epistolaris Regni Bohemiae, a collection of diplomatic and epistolary documents from the Kingdom of Bohemia, dating back to the 13th century.
Notable individuals with the surname Chmelar include Václav Chmelar (1675-1742), a Czech composer and organist who served at the Church of St. Vitus in Prague. Antonín Chmelar (1808-1891) was a Czech painter and lithographer, known for his landscapes and portraits of notable figures from the Czech National Revival movement.
In the 20th century, Bohumil Chmelar (1908-1986) was a Czech writer and poet, recognized for his contributions to children's literature. Jaroslav Chmelar (1928-2010) was a prominent Czech architect and urban planner, responsible for the design of several notable buildings in Prague and other cities.
Another notable figure was Zdeněk Chmelar (1933-2015), a Czech ice hockey player and coach, who represented Czechoslovakia in the 1960 Winter Olympics and later served as the national team coach.
While the spelling Chmelar is the most common, variations such as Chmielar, Chmielarz, and Chmielewski have also been recorded, particularly in areas where the surname has spread beyond its original Czech homeland.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Chmelar
Among Census respondents with the surname Chmelar, the largest self-reported group is White at 100.0%.
The bar chart below shows how Chmelar 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 Chmelar surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White100.0% · 183
Timeline
Historical Census data for Chmelar
Chmelar 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
#91,625
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 201
+1 bearers (+0.5%)
Per 100,000 0.07
Rank movement Down 4,968 places
2020
#104,276
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 183
-18 bearers (-9.0%)
Per 100,000 0.06
Rank movement Down 12,651 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #86,657 | 200 | 0.07 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #91,625 | 201 | 0.07 | +1 bearers (+0.5%) | Down 4,968 places |
| 2020 | #104,276 | 183 | 0.06 | -18 bearers (-9.0%) | Down 12,651 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 Chmelar 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 | #91,625 | #104,276 | -13.8% |
| Count | 201 | 183 | -9.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.07 | 0.06 | -12.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Chmelar bearers went from 201 to 183 (-9.0% change). The surname moved down 12,651 positions in the national ranking, going from #91,625 to #104,276.
FAQ
Chmelar surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Chmelar?
Name Census estimates that about 210 living Americans carry the surname Chmelar. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,632,164 residents.
How common is Chmelar?
Chmelar ranks #104,276 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.06 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 183 people with the surname Chmelar. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (210), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.06 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.06 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 Chmelar.
Has Chmelar become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Chmelar went from 201 recorded bearers to 183. That is a decrease of 18 (-9.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #91,625 to #104,276.
What does the Census say about the background of Chmelar?
Among Census respondents with the surname Chmelar, the largest self-reported group is White at 100.0%. 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 Chmelar in the 2020 Census, accounting for 100.0% (183 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Chmelar appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (100.0%). 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 Chmelar (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 Chmelar mean?
A surname of Czech origin meaning someone who cultivated or traded hops. 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 Chmelar (0.06 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 share the surname Chmelar?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.