2000
#7,660
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,005
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.48
Rare Last name
Erdmann
A German occupational surname denoting a farmer or someone who worked the land.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,710 Americans carry the last name Erdmann. That puts it at #7,759 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.37 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 72,772 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Erdmann 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
4.7K
1 in 72,772
Census rank
#7,759
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,107 bearers of the surname Erdmann in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.37 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7759th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Erdmann, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.3%) and Two or More Races (2.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Erdmann
The surname ERDMANN originated in Germany and can be traced back to the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Old German words "erda" meaning earth and "mann" meaning man, essentially translating to "man of the earth" or "farmer".
One of the earliest recorded references to the name ERDMANN is found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae, a collection of historical documents from Saxony, dating back to the 13th century. In this document, a certain "Erdmannus de Lipsca" (Erdmann of Leipzig) is mentioned, suggesting the name was already in use at that time.
The ERDMANN surname can also be found in the Deutsches Namenbuch, a comprehensive study of German surnames published in the late 19th century. According to this work, the name was particularly common in the regions of Saxony, Thuringia, and Brandenburg.
Notable individuals with the surname ERDMANN throughout history include Johannes Erdmann (1483-1537), a German theologian and reformer who was a close associate of Martin Luther. Another prominent figure was Johann Eduard Erdmann (1805-1892), a German philosopher and author who wrote extensively on the history of philosophy.
In the realm of science, the name ERDMANN is associated with Hugo Erdmann (1862-1916), a German chemist known for his work on the theory of chemical indicators and the development of synthetic dyes. His contemporary, Benno Erdmann (1851-1921), was a geologist and paleontologist who made significant contributions to the study of fossil plants.
Lastly, a more recent example is the German-American mathematician and logician, Carl Adam Erdmann (1900-1979), who made important contributions to the field of mathematical logic and set theory.
Throughout its history, the surname ERDMANN has maintained its connection to the agricultural roots and the idea of being "grounded" or "close to the earth", reflecting the occupations and lifestyles of its earliest bearers.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Erdmann
Among Census respondents with the surname Erdmann, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.3%) and Two or More Races (2.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Erdmann 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 Erdmann surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.5% · 3,798
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 134
- Two or more races2.9% · 119
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 27
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 20
- Black or African American0.2% · 9
Timeline
Historical Census data for Erdmann
Erdmann 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
#8,119
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,085
+80 bearers (+2.0%)
Per 100,000 1.38
Rank movement Down 459 places
2020
#7,759
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,107
+22 bearers (+0.5%)
Per 100,000 1.37
Rank movement Up 360 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,660 | 4,005 | 1.48 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,119 | 4,085 | 1.38 | +80 bearers (+2.0%) | Down 459 places |
| 2020 | #7,759 | 4,107 | 1.37 | +22 bearers (+0.5%) | Up 360 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 Erdmann 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 | #8,119 | #7,759 | 4.4% |
| Count | 4,085 | 4,107 | 0.5% |
| Per 100K | 1.38 | 1.37 | -0.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Erdmann bearers went from 4,085 to 4,107 (+0.5% change). The surname moved up 360 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,119 to #7,759.
FAQ
Erdmann surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Erdmann?
Name Census estimates that about 4,710 living Americans carry the surname Erdmann. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 72,772 residents.
How common is Erdmann?
Erdmann ranks #7,759 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.37 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 4,107 people with the surname Erdmann. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,710), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.37 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.37 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Erdmann.
Has Erdmann become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Erdmann went from 4,085 recorded bearers to 4,107. That is an increase of 22 (+0.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #8,119 to #7,759.
What does the Census say about the background of Erdmann?
Among Census respondents with the surname Erdmann, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.3%) 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 Erdmann in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.5% (3,798 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Erdmann appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.5%), Hispanic (3.3%), 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 Erdmann (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 Erdmann mean?
A German occupational surname denoting a farmer or someone who worked the land. 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 Erdmann (1.37 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 common is the surname Erdmann?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people are called Erdmann at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.