2000
#121,780
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 131
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Finklestein
A German surname derived from the Yiddish "finkelshteyn" meaning "little spark."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 130 Americans carry the last name Finklestein. That puts it at #147,221 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,636,572 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Finklestein 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Finklestein with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
130
1 in 2,636,572
Census rank
#147,221
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
113
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 113 bearers of the surname Finklestein in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 147221st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Finklestein, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.1%) and Black (6.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Finklestein
The surname Finklestein is a German-Jewish name that originated in the 14th century. It is derived from the Yiddish words "finkl," meaning a small spark or ray of light, and "stein," meaning stone. The name likely referred to someone who lived near a quarry or a place where stones were quarried.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the records of the Jewish community in the town of Worms, Germany, in the late 1300s. The name appears as "Finkelstin" in these documents.
In the 15th century, the name Finklestein began to appear in various parts of Germany and Eastern Europe, including Poland and Lithuania. It is believed that the name spread to these regions due to the migration of Jewish communities during this time.
One of the earliest known individuals with the name Finklestein was Rabbi Yitzchak Finklestein, a prominent scholar who lived in the town of Kraków, Poland, in the late 16th century. He wrote several influential works on Jewish law and tradition.
Another notable figure with the surname Finklestein was Leib Finklestein, a Jewish merchant and philanthropist who lived in the city of Frankfurt, Germany, in the early 18th century. He was known for his charitable contributions to the local Jewish community.
In the 19th century, the name Finklestein appeared in various historical records across Europe. For example, Yehuda Finklestein was a prominent rabbi and scholar in the city of Vilnius, Lithuania, in the mid-1800s.
Other notable individuals with the surname Finklestein include Shlomo Finklestein, a Zionist leader and one of the founders of the city of Tel Aviv in the early 20th century, and Louis Finklestein, an American academic and president of the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York City from 1939 to 1964.
While the name Finklestein has its roots in Germany and Eastern Europe, it has since spread to various parts of the world due to migration and diaspora of Jewish communities.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Finklestein
Among Census respondents with the surname Finklestein, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.1%) and Black (6.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Finklestein 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 Finklestein surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White81.4% · 92
- Hispanic or Latino7.1% · 8
- Black or African American6.2% · 7
- Two or more races3.5% · 4
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.8% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Finklestein
Finklestein 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
#143,149
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 116
-15 bearers (-11.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 21,369 places
2020
#147,221
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
-3 bearers (-2.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 4,072 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #121,780 | 131 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #143,149 | 116 | 0.04 | -15 bearers (-11.5%) | Down 21,369 places |
| 2020 | #147,221 | 113 | 0.04 | -3 bearers (-2.6%) | Down 4,072 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 Finklestein 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 | #143,149 | #147,221 | -2.8% |
| Count | 116 | 113 | -2.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -5.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Finklestein bearers went from 116 to 113 (-2.6% change). The surname moved down 4,072 positions in the national ranking, going from #143,149 to #147,221.
FAQ
Finklestein surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Finklestein?
Name Census estimates that about 130 living Americans carry the surname Finklestein. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,636,572 residents.
How common is Finklestein?
Finklestein ranks #147,221 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 113 people with the surname Finklestein. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (130), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Finklestein.
Has Finklestein become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Finklestein went from 116 recorded bearers to 113. That is a decrease of 3 (-2.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #143,149 to #147,221.
What does the Census say about the background of Finklestein?
Among Census respondents with the surname Finklestein, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.1%) and Black (6.2%). 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 Finklestein in the 2020 Census, accounting for 81.4% (92 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Finklestein appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (81.4%), Hispanic (7.1%), Black (6.2%). 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 Finklestein (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 Finklestein mean?
A German surname derived from the Yiddish "finkelshteyn" meaning "little spark." 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 Finklestein (0.04 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 Finklestein?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.