2000
#124,109
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 128
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Gestrich
A German surname derived from a habitational name for someone from a place called Gestrichen.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 133 Americans carry the last name Gestrich. That puts it at #145,028 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,577,100 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Gestrich 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
133
1 in 2,577,100
Census rank
#145,028
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
116
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 116 bearers of the surname Gestrich in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 145028th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Gestrich, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.2%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Gestrich
The surname Gestrich is believed to have originated in Germany, with roots dating back to the 16th century or earlier. It is thought to be derived from the German word "Gerstrich," which means "barley field" or "field of barley." This suggests that the name likely originated as a descriptive term for someone who lived near or worked on a barley field.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Gestrich can be found in a document from the town of Rothenburg ob der Tauber, located in the Franconian region of Bavaria, Germany, dating back to the mid-1500s. This document mentions a certain Hans Gestrich, who was a landowner in the area.
In the 17th century, the name appears in various church records and municipal documents across various regions of Germany, including Saxony, Thuringia, and the Rhineland. This suggests that the name had spread to different parts of the country by this time.
One notable individual with the surname Gestrich was Johann Gestrich, a German theologian and philosopher who lived from 1637 to 1701. He was a prominent figure in the Lutheran church and served as a professor of theology at the University of Jena.
Another individual of note was Wilhelm Gestrich, a German lawyer and politician who lived from 1832 to 1899. He served as a member of the Reichstag (the parliament of the German Empire) and was known for his advocacy of workers' rights and social reforms.
In the 19th century, the name Gestrich also appears in records from the United States, indicating that some individuals bearing this surname had immigrated to North America during this period. One such individual was Carl Gestrich, a German immigrant who settled in Ohio in the 1840s and became a successful farmer and landowner.
Additionally, the name Gestrich has been associated with various place names in Germany, such as Gestrichshausen, a village in the state of Baden-Württemberg. This further reinforces the connection between the surname and its potential origins as a descriptive term related to barley fields or agricultural lands.
While the surname Gestrich is not among the most common surnames in Germany or other parts of the world, it has a rich history and can be traced back to its origins in various regions of Germany, particularly in the Franconian and Saxon areas, where it first appeared in written records several centuries ago.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gestrich
Among Census respondents with the surname Gestrich, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.2%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Gestrich 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 Gestrich surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.7% · 104
- Two or more races5.2% · 6
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.4% · 4
- Hispanic or Latino1.7% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Gestrich
Gestrich 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
#133,048
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 127
-1 bearers (-0.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 8,939 places
2020
#145,028
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 116
-11 bearers (-8.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 11,980 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #124,109 | 128 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #133,048 | 127 | 0.04 | -1 bearers (-0.8%) | Down 8,939 places |
| 2020 | #145,028 | 116 | 0.04 | -11 bearers (-8.7%) | Down 11,980 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 Gestrich 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 | #133,048 | #145,028 | -9.0% |
| Count | 127 | 116 | -8.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -3.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Gestrich bearers went from 127 to 116 (-8.7% change). The surname moved down 11,980 positions in the national ranking, going from #133,048 to #145,028.
FAQ
Gestrich surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Gestrich?
Name Census estimates that about 133 living Americans carry the surname Gestrich. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,577,100 residents.
How common is Gestrich?
Gestrich ranks #145,028 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 116 people with the surname Gestrich. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (133), 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 Gestrich.
Has Gestrich become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Gestrich went from 127 recorded bearers to 116. That is a decrease of 11 (-8.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #133,048 to #145,028.
What does the Census say about the background of Gestrich?
Among Census respondents with the surname Gestrich, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.2%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.4%). 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 Gestrich in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.7% (104 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Gestrich appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.7%), Two or More Races (5.2%), Asian/Pacific Islander (3.4%). 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 Gestrich (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 Gestrich mean?
A German surname derived from a habitational name for someone from a place called Gestrichen. 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 Gestrich (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 are called Gestrich?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people are called Gestrich at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.