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

Erdman, 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 Erdman surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Erdman in America

Erdman is the 5311th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Erdman surname appeared 6,558 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Erdman.

We can also compare 2010 data for Erdman 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.

The history of the last name Erdman

The surname Erdman is of German origin, with roots tracing back to the medieval era. It is believed to have emerged in the region of Bavaria during the 12th or 13th century. The name is derived from the Old German words "erda" meaning "earth" and "mann" meaning "man," suggesting a connection to agriculture or a profession related to the land.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Erdman can be found in a document from the town of Nuremberg, dated around 1320, where a certain "Hans Erdman" is mentioned as a landowner. Another early reference is in the Bavarian town records of Augsburg from the late 14th century, which lists an "Ulrich Erdman" as a resident.

During the 15th century, the name appears to have spread to other German-speaking regions, such as Saxony and Silesia. In a manuscript from the city of Leipzig, dated 1472, a certain "Konrad Erdman" is listed as a merchant and guild member.

Variants of the name, such as Erdmann, Ehrdmann, and Eerdman, can be found in historical records from various parts of Germany, as well as in neighboring countries like the Netherlands and Switzerland.

Notable individuals with the surname Erdman include:

1. Johann Erdman (1615-1692), a German theologian and author from Saxony.
2. Anna Maria Erdman (1687-1762), a German painter and engraver from Nuremberg.
3. Nils Erdman (1808-1888), a Swedish businessman and industrialist who founded the Erdman Furniture Company.
4. Otto Erdman (1834-1905), a German-American engineer and professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
5. Charles Erdman (1866-1960), an American Presbyterian minister and author from Pennsylvania.

The surname Erdman has also been associated with various place names throughout Germany, such as Erdmannsdorf, a village in Saxony, and Erdmannshausen, a town in Lower Saxony.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Erdman

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

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 Erdman was:

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 Erdman has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

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 Erdman was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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