2000
#54,880
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 351
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.13
Very Rare Last name
Elgart
A surname derived from the German elements "El" meaning foreign and "gart" meaning garden or farm.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 425 Americans carry the last name Elgart. That puts it at #58,949 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.12 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 806,481 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Elgart 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
425
1 in 806,481
Census rank
#58,949
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
371
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 371 bearers of the surname Elgart in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.12 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 58949th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Elgart, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.7%) and Two or More Races (2.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Elgart
The surname ELGART is of German origin, with roots tracing back to the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Old German word "ēl," meaning "foreign" or "strange," and "gart," meaning "garden" or "enclosure." The name likely originated as a descriptor for someone who lived near a garden or fenced area belonging to foreigners or outsiders.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae Regiae, a collection of medieval documents from Saxony, dating back to the 13th century. The name appears as "Elgart" in reference to a landowner in the region.
In the 14th century, the name was found in various spellings, such as "Elgarten" and "Elgarthen," in records from the city of Nuremberg, a prominent center of trade and commerce in Germany at the time.
A notable figure bearing the ELGART surname was Johann Elgart, a German composer and organist who lived from 1592 to 1655. He served as the organist at the Marienkirche in Rostock and composed numerous sacred works for the church.
In the 17th century, the name was also found in records from the Palatinate region of Germany, where it appeared as "Elgardt" and "Elgart."
Another individual of note was Friedrich Elgart, a German mathematician and astronomer born in 1719. He made significant contributions to the study of celestial mechanics and published several important works on the subject.
In the 19th century, the surname ELGART appeared in various German-speaking regions, including Austria and Switzerland. One notable bearer of the name was Karl Elgart, an Austrian painter and printmaker who lived from 1858 to 1932. He was renowned for his landscapes and depictions of rural life.
The name also found its way to other parts of Europe, including the Netherlands, where it was recorded as "Elgaart" in the 18th century.
As German immigrants began to settle in other parts of the world, the surname ELGART spread to new regions. One notable figure was Wilhelm Elgart, a German-American musician and bandleader who lived from 1886 to 1963. He led a popular dance band during the big band era and performed extensively in New York City and across the United States.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Elgart
Among Census respondents with the surname Elgart, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.7%) and Two or More Races (2.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Elgart 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 Elgart surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.8% · 348
- Hispanic or Latino2.7% · 10
- Two or more races2.2% · 8
- Black or African American1.1% · 4
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.3% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Elgart
Elgart 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
#54,296
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 380
+29 bearers (+8.3%)
Per 100,000 0.13
Rank movement Up 584 places
2020
#58,949
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 371
-9 bearers (-2.4%)
Per 100,000 0.12
Rank movement Down 4,653 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #54,880 | 351 | 0.13 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #54,296 | 380 | 0.13 | +29 bearers (+8.3%) | Up 584 places |
| 2020 | #58,949 | 371 | 0.12 | -9 bearers (-2.4%) | Down 4,653 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 Elgart 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 | #54,296 | #58,949 | -8.6% |
| Count | 380 | 371 | -2.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.13 | 0.12 | -4.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Elgart bearers went from 380 to 371 (-2.4% change). The surname moved down 4,653 positions in the national ranking, going from #54,296 to #58,949.
FAQ
Elgart surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Elgart?
Name Census estimates that about 425 living Americans carry the surname Elgart. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 806,481 residents.
How common is Elgart?
Elgart ranks #58,949 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.12 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 371 people with the surname Elgart. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (425), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.12 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.12 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 Elgart.
Has Elgart become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Elgart went from 380 recorded bearers to 371. That is a decrease of 9 (-2.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #54,296 to #58,949.
What does the Census say about the background of Elgart?
Among Census respondents with the surname Elgart, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.7%) and Two or More Races (2.2%). 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 Elgart in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.8% (348 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Elgart appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.8%), Hispanic (2.7%), Two or More Races (2.2%). 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 Elgart (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 Elgart mean?
A surname derived from the German elements "El" meaning foreign and "gart" meaning garden or farm. 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 Elgart (0.12 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 are called Elgart?
See how many people have the surname Elgart on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.