2000
#3,110
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 10,684
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.96
Uncommon Last name
Custer
An occupational surname for a maker or seller of armor and helmets, derived from Old French.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 11,650 Americans carry the last name Custer. That puts it at #3,437 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.40 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 29,421 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Custer 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 Custer with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
12K
1 in 29,421
Census rank
#3,437
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
10K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 10,159 bearers of the surname Custer in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.40 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3437th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Custer, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Custer
The surname Custer originated in Germany, where it was derived from the Middle High German word "kuste," meaning "dwelling" or "lodging." This name likely referred to someone who lived in or near a small house or cottage.
The earliest known recorded instance of the Custer name dates back to the 13th century, when it appeared in various Germanic records and manuscripts. It was often spelled in slightly different variations, such as Kuster, Küster, or Küstner.
One of the earliest documented individuals with this surname was Hans Custer, a farmer who lived in the village of Heidingsfeld, near Würzburg, in the late 15th century. Another notable figure was Johann Custer, a Protestant reformer and theologian who lived in Wittenberg, Germany, in the 16th century (born around 1520, died in 1597).
The Custer name can also be traced back to certain place names in Germany, such as Küstrin (now Kostrzyn, Poland), which was once referred to as "Cüstrin" or "Küstrin." This suggests that some individuals may have adopted the surname based on their place of origin or residence.
As the Custer family spread across Europe, the name became more widespread. One of the most famous individuals with this surname was George Armstrong Custer (1839-1876), an American Army officer who achieved notoriety for his role in the Battle of Little Bighorn against the Sioux and Cheyenne tribes in Montana.
Other notable individuals with the surname Custer include:
1. Emanuel Custer (1868-1951), an American Army officer and brother of George Armstrong Custer.
2. Grethe Custer (1892-1983), a Norwegian actress and singer.
3. Günther Custer (1801-1867), a German writer and journalist.
4. John Custer (1917-2002), an American painter and illustrator.
5. Judith Custer (born 1959), an American author and journalist.
While the Custer name has undergone various spelling variations over the centuries, its Germanic roots and association with dwellings or lodgings have remained a consistent theme throughout its history.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Custer
Among Census respondents with the surname Custer, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Custer 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 Custer surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.9% · 9,234
- Two or more races3.3% · 340
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 287
- Black or African American1.3% · 135
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 98
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 65
Timeline
Historical Census data for Custer
Custer 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
#3,324
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 10,790
+106 bearers (+1.0%)
Per 100,000 3.66
Rank movement Down 214 places
2020
#3,437
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 10,159
-631 bearers (-5.8%)
Per 100,000 3.40
Rank movement Down 113 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,110 | 10,684 | 3.96 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,324 | 10,790 | 3.66 | +106 bearers (+1.0%) | Down 214 places |
| 2020 | #3,437 | 10,159 | 3.40 | -631 bearers (-5.8%) | Down 113 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 Custer 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 | #3,324 | #3,437 | -3.4% |
| Count | 10,790 | 10,159 | -5.8% |
| Per 100K | 3.66 | 3.40 | -7.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Custer bearers went from 10,790 to 10,159 (-5.8% change). The surname moved down 113 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,324 to #3,437.
FAQ
Custer surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Custer?
Name Census estimates that about 11,650 living Americans carry the surname Custer. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 29,421 residents.
How common is Custer?
Custer ranks #3,437 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.40 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 10,159 people with the surname Custer. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (11,650), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.4 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.40 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Custer.
Has Custer become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Custer went from 10,790 recorded bearers to 10,159. That is a decrease of 631 (-5.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,324 to #3,437.
What does the Census say about the background of Custer?
Among Census respondents with the surname Custer, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (2.8%). 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 Custer in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.9% (9,234 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Custer appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.9%), Two or More Races (3.3%), Hispanic (2.8%). 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 Custer (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 Custer mean?
An occupational surname for a maker or seller of armor and helmets, derived from Old French. 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 Custer (3.40 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 Custer?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.