Erber last name popularity, history, and meaning

Find out how popular the last name Erber is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Erber.

Meaning of Erber

From the German word for "heir", indicating an inherited status or position.

Erber, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Erber surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Erber in America

Erber is the 52482nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Erber surname appeared 395 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Erber.

We can also compare 2010 data for Erber to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 52482 45573 14.09%
Count 395 442 -11.23%
Proportion per 100k 0.13 0.16 -20.69%

The history of the last name Erber

The surname ERBER has its origins in Germany, with records dating back to the 13th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old German word "erbe" or "erbi," meaning "heir" or "inheritance." This suggests that the name was initially associated with individuals who inherited property or wealth.

In its earliest known spelling variations, the name appeared as "Erber," "Erbart," or "Erbhart," reflecting the regional dialects and phonetic variations of the time. The surname was particularly prevalent in southern Germany, including regions like Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg.

One of the earliest recorded mentions of the ERBER name can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae, a compilation of historical documents from Saxony, Germany, dating back to the 13th century. The name appears in various records and charters from that period.

Notable individuals with the surname ERBER include Johann Erber (1641-1695), a German composer and organist active in the 17th century. His compositions were influential in the development of Baroque music in Germany.

In the 18th century, Johann Baptist Erber (1749-1827) was a notable German astronomer and mathematician. He made significant contributions to the field of celestial mechanics and served as the director of the observatory in Munich.

During the 19th century, Johann Georg Erber (1810-1888) was a German architect and engineer known for his work on several prominent buildings in Munich, including the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek (Bavarian State Library).

Another notable figure was Friedrich Erber (1875-1951), a German businessman and industrialist. He founded the Erber Group, a successful conglomerate specializing in textiles and machinery manufacturing.

In the 20th century, Willi Erber (1908-1986) was a German athlete who competed in the 1936 Berlin Olympics, winning a silver medal in the decathlon event.

While the ERBER surname has its roots in Germany, it has since spread to other parts of the world, with families bearing this name found in various countries, including Austria, Switzerland, and the United States.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Erber

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Erber.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

  1. White only
  2. Black only
  3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
  4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
  5. Hispanic
  6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Erber was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 93.16% 368
Non-Hispanic Black Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.00% 0
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 2.03% 8
Hispanic Origin 3.29% 13

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Erber has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 93.16% 96.83% -3.86%
Black (S)% (S)% (S)%
Asian and Pacific Islander (S)% (S)% (S)%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
Two or More Races 2.03% (S)% (S)%
Hispanic 3.29% 1.13% 97.74%

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Erber was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Erber, please contact us.

Reference this page

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"Erber last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on December 22, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/erber-surname-popularity/.

"Erber last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/erber-surname-popularity/. Accessed 22 December, 2024

Erber last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/erber-surname-popularity/.

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