2000
#6,787
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,578
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.70
Rare Last name
Eberly
Derived from a place name meaning "boar clearing" in Old English, referring to a person who lived there.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,632 Americans carry the last name Eberly. That puts it at #6,615 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.64 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 60,858 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Eberly 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
5.6K
1 in 60,858
Census rank
#6,615
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,911 bearers of the surname Eberly in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.64 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6615th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Eberly, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.2%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Eberly
The surname Eberly originated in Germany and has its roots in the Middle Ages. It is believed to have been derived from the Old German word "ebur," which means "wild boar." This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who hunted or lived near areas where wild boars were found.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Eberly can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae, a collection of medieval documents from Saxony, which dates back to the 12th century. In these records, the name appears as "Eberli," a diminutive form of the more common German surname "Eberhardus."
During the 13th century, the name Eberly began to appear in various forms, such as "Everli" and "Eberlin," in records from regions like Bavaria and Swabia. This variation in spelling was common in the Middle Ages due to the lack of standardized writing conventions.
In the 14th century, the surname Eberly was associated with several notable individuals. One such person was Johann Eberly, a scholar and theologian born in Nuremberg in 1349. He is known for his contributions to the study of canon law and his writings on the council of Basel.
Another prominent figure was Hans Eberly, a German artist and printmaker born in Augsburg in 1470. His woodcuts and engravings, which often depicted religious and allegorical themes, were highly regarded during the Renaissance period.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the name Eberly became more widespread across German-speaking regions. In the town of Bamberg, records from 1567 mention a family named Eberly who owned a successful brewing business.
The name Eberly also has ties to several place names in Germany, such as Eberleinstein, a small village in Bavaria, and Eberleinsfeld, a district in the town of Weißenburg. These locations may have influenced the evolution of the surname or served as places of origin for different branches of the Eberly family.
As German immigrants began to settle in other parts of Europe and the Americas, the name Eberly was carried with them. In the 18th century, Johann Peter Eberly, a Prussian immigrant, became one of the first settlers of the town of Eberly's Mills (now known as Eberly, Pennsylvania) in the United States.
Throughout history, the surname Eberly has been associated with individuals from various professions, including scholars, artists, brewers, and pioneers. While the exact origins of the name may be obscured by time, its enduring presence across centuries serves as a testament to its rich historical significance.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Eberly
Among Census respondents with the surname Eberly, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.2%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Eberly 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 Eberly surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.8% · 4,559
- Two or more races3.2% · 156
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 125
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 33
- Black or African American0.6% · 30
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Eberly
Eberly 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
#6,985
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,796
+218 bearers (+4.8%)
Per 100,000 1.63
Rank movement Down 198 places
2020
#6,615
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,911
+115 bearers (+2.4%)
Per 100,000 1.64
Rank movement Up 370 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,787 | 4,578 | 1.70 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,985 | 4,796 | 1.63 | +218 bearers (+4.8%) | Down 198 places |
| 2020 | #6,615 | 4,911 | 1.64 | +115 bearers (+2.4%) | Up 370 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 Eberly 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 | #6,985 | #6,615 | 5.3% |
| Count | 4,796 | 4,911 | 2.4% |
| Per 100K | 1.63 | 1.64 | 0.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Eberly bearers went from 4,796 to 4,911 (+2.4% change). The surname moved up 370 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,985 to #6,615.
FAQ
Eberly surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Eberly?
Name Census estimates that about 5,632 living Americans carry the surname Eberly. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 60,858 residents.
How common is Eberly?
Eberly ranks #6,615 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.64 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 4,911 people with the surname Eberly. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,632), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.64 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.64 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Eberly.
Has Eberly become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Eberly went from 4,796 recorded bearers to 4,911. That is an increase of 115 (+2.4%). In the national ranking it rose from #6,985 to #6,615.
What does the Census say about the background of Eberly?
Among Census respondents with the surname Eberly, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.2%) and Hispanic (2.5%). 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 Eberly in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.8% (4,559 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Eberly appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.8%), Two or More Races (3.2%), Hispanic (2.5%). 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 Eberly (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 Eberly mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "boar clearing" in Old English, referring to a person who lived there. 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 Eberly (1.64 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 Eberly?
For a quick modern take, check how many people are called Eberly on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.