2000
#129,619
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 121
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Ellifrits
A German surname indicating an immigrant from Ellis Island.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 139 Americans carry the last name Ellifrits. That puts it at #141,309 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,465,859 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Ellifrits 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
139
1 in 2,465,859
Census rank
#141,309
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
121
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 121 bearers of the surname Ellifrits in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 141309th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Ellifrits, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.6%) and Two or More Races (5.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Ellifrits
The surname ELLIFRITS is a rare name that originated in the German-speaking regions of Europe, likely in the late Middle Ages or early modern period. It is believed to be derived from the Germanic root words "elli" and "frits," which may have been a personal name or nickname referring to someone's strength or physical stature.
The earliest known records of the ELLIFRITS surname date back to the 16th and 17th centuries in various German principalities and territories. One of the earliest documented individuals with this name was Hans ELLIFRITS, a farmer who lived in the village of Niederau in the Palatinate region of Germany in the late 1500s.
Another notable bearer of the ELLIFRITS name was Johann ELLIFRITS, a Protestant minister who served in the town of Worms in the early 1600s. He is mentioned in several church records and local chronicles from that time period.
As the ELLIFRITS family dispersed across Europe in the following centuries, variations in spelling arose, including ELLIFRITTS, ELIFRITTS, and ELLIFRITZ. One branch of the family settled in the German-speaking regions of Switzerland, where Johannes ELLIFRITS, a blacksmith, was born in the village of Muri in 1723.
In the 19th century, some members of the ELLIFRITS family emigrated to the United States and other parts of the world. One of the earliest known American ELLIFRITS was Jacob ELLIFRITS, who was born in Bavaria in 1820 and later settled in Pennsylvania.
Other notable individuals with the ELLIFRITS surname throughout history include:
1. Wilhelm ELLIFRITS (1856-1932), a German painter and artist known for his landscapes and portraits.
2. Elise ELLIFRITS (1879-1958), a Swiss educator and advocate for women's rights.
3. Karl ELLIFRITS (1892-1976), an Austrian-born engineer who contributed to the development of early automobiles in the United States.
4. Heinrich ELLIFRITS (1912-1998), a German soldier who fought in World War II and later became a historian, writing several books on military history.
5. Ingrid ELLIFRITS (1947-2021), a German-American professor of linguistics who taught at various universities in the United States.
While relatively uncommon, the ELLIFRITS surname has a rich history spanning multiple countries and centuries, with bearers of this name making contributions in various fields, from religion and the arts to education and military service.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ellifrits
Among Census respondents with the surname Ellifrits, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.6%) and Two or More Races (5.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Ellifrits 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 Ellifrits surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White83.5% · 101
- Hispanic or Latino6.6% · 8
- Two or more races5.0% · 6
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.3% · 4
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.7% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Ellifrits
Ellifrits 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
#126,765
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 135
+14 bearers (+11.6%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Up 2,854 places
2020
#141,309
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 121
-14 bearers (-10.4%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 14,544 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #129,619 | 121 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #126,765 | 135 | 0.05 | +14 bearers (+11.6%) | Up 2,854 places |
| 2020 | #141,309 | 121 | 0.04 | -14 bearers (-10.4%) | Down 14,544 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 Ellifrits 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 | #126,765 | #141,309 | -11.5% |
| Count | 135 | 121 | -10.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.04 | -19.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Ellifrits bearers went from 135 to 121 (-10.4% change). The surname moved down 14,544 positions in the national ranking, going from #126,765 to #141,309.
FAQ
Ellifrits surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Ellifrits?
Name Census estimates that about 139 living Americans carry the surname Ellifrits. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,465,859 residents.
How common is Ellifrits?
Ellifrits ranks #141,309 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 121 people with the surname Ellifrits. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (139), 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 Ellifrits.
Has Ellifrits become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Ellifrits went from 135 recorded bearers to 121. That is a decrease of 14 (-10.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #126,765 to #141,309.
What does the Census say about the background of Ellifrits?
Among Census respondents with the surname Ellifrits, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.6%) and Two or More Races (5.0%). 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 Ellifrits in the 2020 Census, accounting for 83.5% (101 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Ellifrits appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (83.5%), Hispanic (6.6%), Two or More Races (5.0%). 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 Ellifrits (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 Ellifrits mean?
A German surname indicating an immigrant from Ellis Island. 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 Ellifrits (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 share the surname Ellifrits?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.