2000
#139,757
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Egenlauf
A surname likely derived from a combination of German words meaning "own" and "running" or "course."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 131 Americans carry the last name Egenlauf. That puts it at #146,495 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,616,445 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Egenlauf 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
131
1 in 2,616,445
Census rank
#146,495
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
114
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 114 bearers of the surname Egenlauf in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 146495th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Egenlauf, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (7.9%) and Black (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Egenlauf
The surname EGENLAUF is of German origin, deriving from the Old High German words "egan" meaning "own" and "louf" meaning "course" or "path." It is believed to have emerged in the late medieval period, likely referring to an individual's self-determined path in life or a distinctive trait or characteristic that set them apart.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name EGENLAUF can be found in the Kirchenbücher (church records) of the village of Rothenburg ob der Tauber, located in the state of Bavaria, dating back to the 15th century. These records document the existence of a family by the name of EGENLAUF residing in the area during that time.
In the 16th century, the EGENLAUF name appears in various legal documents and land registers in the region of Franconia, which encompassed parts of present-day Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg. This suggests that the name had gained a degree of prominence among the local population.
The first notable figure bearing the surname EGENLAUF was Hans EGENLAUF (c. 1480-1542), a master woodcarver and sculptor renowned for his intricate religious altarpieces and church furnishings. His works can still be found in various churches across southern Germany, particularly in the cities of Nuremberg and Bamberg.
Another prominent individual with the EGENLAUF surname was Matthias EGENLAUF (1619-1688), a Lutheran theologian and author who served as a professor at the University of Jena. His most well-known work, "Corpus Theologiae Dogmaticae," published in 1670, was widely studied and influential in the field of Protestant theology during his time.
In the 18th century, Johann Wilhelm EGENLAUF (1732-1801) gained recognition as a skilled clockmaker and inventor. Born in the town of Schwabach, near Nuremberg, he is credited with developing innovative mechanisms for regulating the timekeeping of clocks, which contributed to their increased accuracy and reliability.
Later, in the 19th century, the name EGENLAUF was associated with the rise of the German brewing industry. Wilhelm EGENLAUF (1818-1892), a master brewer from Munich, established the EGENLAUF Brewery in 1848, which quickly gained a reputation for producing high-quality Bavarian lagers and wheat beers.
Another notable figure was Mathilde EGENLAUF (1860-1932), a pioneering German educator and advocate for women's education. She founded one of the first secondary schools for girls in Heidelberg and played a significant role in promoting equal educational opportunities for women in Germany during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Egenlauf
Among Census respondents with the surname Egenlauf, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (7.9%) and Black (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Egenlauf 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 Egenlauf surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.4% · 103
- Two or more races7.9% · 9
- Black or African American1.8% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Egenlauf
Egenlauf 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
#136,449
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 123
+13 bearers (+11.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 3,308 places
2020
#146,495
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
-9 bearers (-7.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 10,046 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #139,757 | 110 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #136,449 | 123 | 0.04 | +13 bearers (+11.8%) | Up 3,308 places |
| 2020 | #146,495 | 114 | 0.04 | -9 bearers (-7.3%) | Down 10,046 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 Egenlauf 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 | #136,449 | #146,495 | -7.4% |
| Count | 123 | 114 | -7.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -4.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Egenlauf bearers went from 123 to 114 (-7.3% change). The surname moved down 10,046 positions in the national ranking, going from #136,449 to #146,495.
FAQ
Egenlauf surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Egenlauf?
Name Census estimates that about 131 living Americans carry the surname Egenlauf. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,616,445 residents.
How common is Egenlauf?
Egenlauf ranks #146,495 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 114 people with the surname Egenlauf. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (131), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Egenlauf.
Has Egenlauf become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Egenlauf went from 123 recorded bearers to 114. That is a decrease of 9 (-7.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #136,449 to #146,495.
What does the Census say about the background of Egenlauf?
Among Census respondents with the surname Egenlauf, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (7.9%) and Black (1.8%). 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 Egenlauf in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.4% (103 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Egenlauf appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.4%), Two or More Races (7.9%), Black (1.8%). 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 Egenlauf (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 Egenlauf mean?
A surname likely derived from a combination of German words meaning "own" and "running" or "course." 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 Egenlauf (0.04 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 have the last name Egenlauf?
Want to know how common the surname Egenlauf is? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.