2000
#8,393
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,620
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.34
Rare Last name
Claus
A surname of German origin, derived from the given name Niklaus or Nicholas, meaning "victory of the people."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,954 Americans carry the last name Claus. That puts it at #9,102 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.15 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 86,685 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Claus 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Claus with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.0K
1 in 86,685
Census rank
#9,102
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,448 bearers of the surname Claus in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.15 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9102nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Claus, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.7%) and Two or More Races (3.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Claus
The surname CLAUS is of German origin, derived from the given name Claus, a shortened form of Niklaus or Nikolaus, the German version of the name Nicholas. The name traces its roots back to the 13th century in various regions of Germany.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname CLAUS can be found in the Ratzeburger Zübel, a medieval record book from the town of Ratzeburg, dating back to the year 1262. An entry mentions a certain "Claus de Molen."
In the 14th century, the surname CLAUS appeared in various German regions, including Bavaria, Saxony, and Silesia. One notable early bearer of the name was Claus von Wernigerode (c. 1330-1407), a German monk and chronicler from the town of Wernigerode.
During the 15th and 16th centuries, the CLAUS surname gained prominence in regions such as Hesse, Thuringia, and Brandenburg. In the 1500s, a certain Claus von Bora (c. 1490-1548), a German nobleman from Saxony, became known for being the husband of the former nun Katharina von Bora, who was married to Martin Luther.
In the 17th century, the surname CLAUS spread to other parts of Europe, including the Netherlands and Scandinavia. One notable bearer of the name was Claus Christoffersen Lonborg (1628-1699), a Danish physician and botanist.
The 18th century saw the CLAUS surname appear in various records across Germany and other parts of Europe. One notable individual was Claus Daniel Eckhardtsen (1719-1789), a German-Danish naval officer and explorer who participated in several expeditions to Greenland.
As the name CLAUS continued to spread throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries, it gained recognition in various fields. One example is Claus Pavels Sluter (1835-1912), a Norwegian architect who designed several prominent buildings in Oslo.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Claus
Among Census respondents with the surname Claus, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.7%) and Two or More Races (3.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Claus 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 Claus surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.6% · 3,090
- Hispanic or Latino4.7% · 162
- Two or more races3.2% · 110
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.3% · 44
- Black or African American0.7% · 24
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 18
Timeline
Historical Census data for Claus
Claus 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
#8,911
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,674
+54 bearers (+1.5%)
Per 100,000 1.25
Rank movement Down 518 places
2020
#9,102
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,448
-226 bearers (-6.2%)
Per 100,000 1.15
Rank movement Down 191 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,393 | 3,620 | 1.34 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,911 | 3,674 | 1.25 | +54 bearers (+1.5%) | Down 518 places |
| 2020 | #9,102 | 3,448 | 1.15 | -226 bearers (-6.2%) | Down 191 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 Claus 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 | #8,911 | #9,102 | -2.1% |
| Count | 3,674 | 3,448 | -6.2% |
| Per 100K | 1.25 | 1.15 | -7.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Claus bearers went from 3,674 to 3,448 (-6.2% change). The surname moved down 191 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,911 to #9,102.
FAQ
Claus surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Claus?
Name Census estimates that about 3,954 living Americans carry the surname Claus. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 86,685 residents.
How common is Claus?
Claus ranks #9,102 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.15 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 3,448 people with the surname Claus. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,954), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.15 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.15 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 Claus.
Has Claus become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Claus went from 3,674 recorded bearers to 3,448. That is a decrease of 226 (-6.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,911 to #9,102.
What does the Census say about the background of Claus?
Among Census respondents with the surname Claus, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.7%) and Two or More Races (3.2%). 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 Claus in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.6% (3,090 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Claus appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.6%), Hispanic (4.7%), Two or More Races (3.2%). 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 Claus (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 Claus mean?
A surname of German origin, derived from the given name Niklaus or Nicholas, meaning "victory of the people." 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 Claus (1.15 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 Americans have the surname Claus?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.