2000
#107,038
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 154
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.06
Very Rare Last name
Feigen
A surname derived from the German word "feige" meaning fig or coward.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 161 Americans carry the last name Feigen. That puts it at #127,742 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.05 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,128,909 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Feigen 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
161
1 in 2,128,909
Census rank
#127,742
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
140
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 140 bearers of the surname Feigen in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.05 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 127742nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Feigen, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.7%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Feigen
The surname FEIGEN originated in Germany during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the German word "feige" meaning "fig" or "fig tree." This suggests that the earliest bearers of this name may have lived near a prominent fig tree or worked with figs in some capacity.
The name FEIGEN can be traced back to the 13th century in various German regions, particularly in areas near the Rhine River. Some early spellings include Feygen, Feighen, and Feyge. Records from the time show the name appeared in towns like Cologne, Mainz, and Frankfurt.
One of the earliest known references to the FEIGEN name comes from the Weissenau Monastery records in Baden, Germany. A monk named Johannes Feigen is mentioned as residing there in 1287. Another early record is the Heidelberg Tax Rolls of 1398, which lists a Peter Feygen as a taxpayer.
In the 15th century, the surname FEIGEN began appearing in other parts of Europe as German families migrated. A notable example is Hans Feigen, a merchant from Nuremberg who established trade connections in Venice, Italy around 1420.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, several FEIGEN families achieved prominence. Johann Feigen (1535-1612) was a respected Lutheran theologian and author in Saxony. Matthias Feigen (1589-1659) served as mayor of the town of Altdorf bei Nürnberg. And in 1692, Christoph Feigen founded one of Germany's earliest porcelain factories in Ansbach.
Other notable individuals with the FEIGEN surname include the poet and playwright Christian Feigen (1737-1806) from Hamburg, and the 19th century Bavarian politician Karl Feigen (1824-1898).
Throughout its long history, the surname FEIGEN has maintained a strong connection to its German roots and the imagery of the humble fig tree.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Feigen
Among Census respondents with the surname Feigen, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.7%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Feigen 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 Feigen surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.1% · 129
- Hispanic or Latino5.7% · 8
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.4% · 2
- Two or more races0.7% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Feigen
Feigen 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
#111,988
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 157
+3 bearers (+1.9%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Down 4,950 places
2020
#127,742
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 140
-17 bearers (-10.8%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Down 15,754 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #107,038 | 154 | 0.06 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #111,988 | 157 | 0.05 | +3 bearers (+1.9%) | Down 4,950 places |
| 2020 | #127,742 | 140 | 0.05 | -17 bearers (-10.8%) | Down 15,754 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 Feigen 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 | #111,988 | #127,742 | -14.1% |
| Count | 157 | 140 | -10.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.05 | -6.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Feigen bearers went from 157 to 140 (-10.8% change). The surname moved down 15,754 positions in the national ranking, going from #111,988 to #127,742.
FAQ
Feigen surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Feigen?
Name Census estimates that about 161 living Americans carry the surname Feigen. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,128,909 residents.
How common is Feigen?
Feigen ranks #127,742 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.05 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 140 people with the surname Feigen. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (161), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.05 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.05 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 Feigen.
Has Feigen become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Feigen went from 157 recorded bearers to 140. That is a decrease of 17 (-10.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #111,988 to #127,742.
What does the Census say about the background of Feigen?
Among Census respondents with the surname Feigen, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.7%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.4%). 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 Feigen in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.1% (129 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Feigen appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.1%), Hispanic (5.7%), Asian/Pacific Islander (1.4%). 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 Feigen (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 Feigen mean?
A surname derived from the German word "feige" meaning fig or coward. 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 Feigen (0.05 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 Feigen?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.