2000
#30,324
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 728
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.27
Very Rare Last name
Engert
A German surname derived from the Germanic personal name Angar.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 742 Americans carry the last name Engert. That puts it at #37,075 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.22 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 461,933 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Engert 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
742
1 in 461,933
Census rank
#37,075
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
647
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 647 bearers of the surname Engert in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.22 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 37075th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Engert, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Engert
The surname Engert is of German origin, and it traces its roots back to the Middle Ages. The name is believed to have originated in the southern regions of Germany, particularly in the areas around Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg.
One theory suggests that Engert is derived from the Old High German word "engiron," which means "to narrow" or "to constrict." This could indicate that the name was initially given to someone who lived near a narrow passage or a constricted area, such as a gorge or a valley.
Another possible origin of the name is the Old German word "anger," meaning "meadow" or "pasture." In this case, Engert may have been a descriptive surname referring to someone who lived near or worked on a meadow or a pasture.
The earliest recorded mention of the name Engert can be found in the Codex Traditionum Monasterii Sancti Galli, a medieval manuscript dating back to the 9th century. This codex contains a list of property owners and landholders in the region, including individuals with the surname Engert.
In the 12th century, a man named Dietrich Engert was recorded as a nobleman and landowner in the region of Bavaria. His name appears in several historical documents from that period, indicating that the Engert family held a prominent position in the local society.
During the 13th century, the name Engert appeared in the Würzburg Liber Censuum, a book of records that documented landholdings and tax payments in the area. This suggests that the Engert family had established themselves as landowners and contributed to the local economy.
One notable figure bearing the surname Engert was Johannes Engert, a German theologian and reformer who lived from 1486 to 1564. He was a prominent figure during the Protestant Reformation and played a role in the spread of Lutheran teachings in Germany.
Another historically significant individual was Hans Engert, a German painter and engraver who lived from 1551 to 1613. He is known for his religious artwork and his contributions to the Nuremberg Renaissance.
In the 18th century, a man named Friedrich Engert (1720-1796) was a renowned composer and musician from Saxony. He worked as a court composer and is credited with composing numerous pieces of sacred and secular music.
Johann Engert (1768-1842) was a German philosopher and educator who lived during the early 19th century. He made significant contributions to the field of pedagogy and authored several influential works on education.
The surname Engert has also been associated with various place names throughout Germany, such as Engertshausen, a village in the state of Hesse, and Engertsberg, a mountain in the Black Forest region of Baden-Württemberg.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Engert
Among Census respondents with the surname Engert, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Engert 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 Engert surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.2% · 603
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 19
- Two or more races2.9% · 19
- Black or African American0.3% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.3% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Engert
Engert 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
#34,574
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 654
-74 bearers (-10.2%)
Per 100,000 0.22
Rank movement Down 4,250 places
2020
#37,075
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 647
-7 bearers (-1.1%)
Per 100,000 0.22
Rank movement Down 2,501 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #30,324 | 728 | 0.27 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #34,574 | 654 | 0.22 | -74 bearers (-10.2%) | Down 4,250 places |
| 2020 | #37,075 | 647 | 0.22 | -7 bearers (-1.1%) | Down 2,501 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 Engert 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 | #34,574 | #37,075 | -7.2% |
| Count | 654 | 647 | -1.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.22 | 0.22 | -1.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Engert bearers went from 654 to 647 (-1.1% change). The surname moved down 2,501 positions in the national ranking, going from #34,574 to #37,075.
FAQ
Engert surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Engert?
Name Census estimates that about 742 living Americans carry the surname Engert. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 461,933 residents.
How common is Engert?
Engert ranks #37,075 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.22 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 647 people with the surname Engert. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (742), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.22 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.22 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 Engert.
Has Engert become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Engert went from 654 recorded bearers to 647. That is a decrease of 7 (-1.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #34,574 to #37,075.
What does the Census say about the background of Engert?
Among Census respondents with the surname Engert, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.9%). 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 Engert in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.2% (603 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Engert appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.2%), Hispanic (2.9%), Two or More Races (2.9%). 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 Engert (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 Engert mean?
A German surname derived from the Germanic personal name Angar. 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 Engert (0.22 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 Engert?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how common the surname Engert is at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.