Find out how popular the last name Earnst is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Earnst.

Earnst, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Earnst surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Earnst in America

Earnst is the 60347th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Earnst surname appeared 334 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Earnst.

We can also compare 2010 data for Earnst to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Earnst

The surname Earnst is of Germanic origin and dates back to the 12th century. It is believed to have originated in the regions of modern-day Germany and the Netherlands. The name is derived from the Old High German word "ernest," which means "serious" or "severe."

In the early Middle Ages, the name was often used as a descriptive surname to refer to individuals with a serious or severe demeanor. It was also sometimes given as a nickname to those who exhibited a solemn or earnest personality.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Earnst appears in the Codex Diplomaticus, a collection of medieval charters and documents from the region of Saxony, dated to the late 12th century. The name is spelled "Ernestus" in these records.

During the 13th and 14th centuries, the name Earnst began to spread across various regions of Germany and the Low Countries. It was sometimes associated with place names, such as Ernstdorf (now Arnschwang) in Bavaria, and Ernstweiler in Rheinland-Pfalz.

In the 15th century, the surname Earnst gained prominence with the rise of the House of Wettin, a German dynasty that ruled over various territories in central Germany, including Saxony and Thuringia. Notable figures from this family include Ernest, Elector of Saxony (1441-1486), and Ernest I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg (1601-1675).

Other notable individuals with the surname Earnst throughout history include:

1. Johann Ernst Altenburg (1734-1801), a German composer and organist.
2. Ernst Theodor Amadeus Hoffmann (1776-1822), a German Romantic author and composer.
3. Ernst Haeckel (1834-1919), a German biologist and philosopher known for his contributions to the theory of evolution.
4. Ernst Mach (1838-1916), an Austrian physicist and philosopher, known for his contributions to the study of supersonic motion.
5. Ernst Jünger (1895-1998), a German writer and war veteran, known for his novels and philosophical works.

While the surname Earnst has its roots in Germanic regions, it has since spread globally and can be found in various countries and cultures.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Earnst

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Earnst.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Earnst was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Earnst has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Earnst was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Earnst, please contact us.

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