2000
#6,147
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,131
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.90
Rare Last name
Gartner
An occupational surname referring to a gardener or someone who tended gardens.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,741 Americans carry the last name Gartner. That puts it at #6,517 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.67 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 59,703 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Gartner 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
5.7K
1 in 59,703
Census rank
#6,517
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,006 bearers of the surname Gartner in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.67 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6517th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Gartner, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (2.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Gartner
The surname Gartner has German origins, deriving from the Middle High German word "gartenaere" or "gartner," meaning "gardener." It originated as an occupational name for someone who worked as a gardener or cultivated a vegetable or ornamental garden.
This name first appeared in Bavaria and other southern German regions during the late medieval period, around the 13th and 14th centuries. It was common for people to adopt surnames based on their professions or trades at that time.
One of the earliest known records of the name Gartner can be found in the Stadtbuch (City Book) of Augsburg, a historical document from the 14th century, which lists several individuals with this surname.
In the 15th century, a man named Hans Gartner was recorded as a citizen of Nuremberg, one of the most prominent cities in the Holy Roman Empire during the Renaissance era.
During the 16th century, a notable figure named Johann Gartner (1512-1563) was a prominent German botanist and physician who authored several works on medicinal plants and their uses.
In the 18th century, a German mathematician and astronomer named Karl Friedrich Gartner (1772-1850) made significant contributions to the study of celestial mechanics and the calculation of comet orbits.
Another notable individual with this surname was the German philosopher and psychologist Eduard Gartner (1801-1877), who is known for his work on the philosophy of mind and his critique of Hegel's idealism.
In more recent history, the Austrian-born American physicist and Nobel laureate Walter Gartner (1924-2017) was recognized for his pioneering research in the field of semiconductor physics and the development of semiconductor devices.
As the surname Gartner spread across German-speaking regions, it also took on variations in spelling, such as Gärtner, Gaertner, or Gertner, which reflect regional dialects and linguistic changes over time.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gartner
Among Census respondents with the surname Gartner, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (2.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Gartner 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 Gartner surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.3% · 4,619
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 170
- Two or more races2.3% · 115
- Black or African American0.9% · 43
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 39
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 20
Timeline
Historical Census data for Gartner
Gartner 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
#6,034
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,694
+563 bearers (+11.0%)
Per 100,000 1.93
Rank movement Up 113 places
2020
#6,517
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,006
-688 bearers (-12.1%)
Per 100,000 1.67
Rank movement Down 483 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,147 | 5,131 | 1.90 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,034 | 5,694 | 1.93 | +563 bearers (+11.0%) | Up 113 places |
| 2020 | #6,517 | 5,006 | 1.67 | -688 bearers (-12.1%) | Down 483 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 Gartner 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 | #6,034 | #6,517 | -8.0% |
| Count | 5,694 | 5,006 | -12.1% |
| Per 100K | 1.93 | 1.67 | -13.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Gartner bearers went from 5,694 to 5,006 (-12.1% change). The surname moved down 483 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,034 to #6,517.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Gartner
FAQ
Gartner surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Gartner?
Name Census estimates that about 5,741 living Americans carry the surname Gartner. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 59,703 residents.
How common is Gartner?
Gartner ranks #6,517 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.67 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,006 people with the surname Gartner. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,741), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.67 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.67 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Gartner.
Has Gartner become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Gartner went from 5,694 recorded bearers to 5,006. That is a decrease of 688 (-12.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #6,034 to #6,517.
What does the Census say about the background of Gartner?
Among Census respondents with the surname Gartner, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Gartner in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.3% (4,619 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Gartner appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.3%), Hispanic (3.4%), Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Gartner (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 Gartner mean?
An occupational surname referring to a gardener or someone who tended gardens. 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 Gartner (1.67 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 have the last name Gartner?
You can see how many people have the last name Gartner on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.