2000
#132,259
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 118
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Goetzmann
A German surname referring to a family or individual from the town of Götzmann.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 126 Americans carry the last name Goetzmann. That puts it at #149,446 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,720,273 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Goetzmann 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
126
1 in 2,720,273
Census rank
#149,446
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
110
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 110 bearers of the surname Goetzmann in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 149446th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Goetzmann, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (7.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Goetzmann
The surname Goetzmann is of German origin, and it emerged during the late medieval period in the regions of central and southern Germany. The name is derived from the Germanic personal name "Gozmann," which itself is a combination of the elements "goz" (meaning "god") and "mann" (meaning "man"). This suggests that the original bearer of the name may have been revered or held in high esteem for their religious devotion or spirituality.
Historically, the Goetzmann name can be traced back to the 14th century, where it appears in various records and manuscripts from the regions of Bavaria, Saxony, and Swabia. One notable early reference is found in the Codex Diplomaticus, a collection of medieval documents from the city of Augsburg, where a certain "Heinrich Gotzman" is mentioned in a deed dated 1369.
In the 15th century, the name underwent some variations in spelling, such as "Gotzman," "Gozmann," and "Gotzmann," reflecting the regional dialects and scribal practices of the time. One of the earliest recorded individuals with this surname is Hans Gotzmann, a prominent merchant and guild member in the city of Nuremberg, who lived from around 1420 to 1487.
As the centuries progressed, the Goetzmann family spread across various parts of Germany and beyond. Notable individuals bearing this surname include:
1. Johann Christian Goetzmann (1720-1799), a German philosopher and theologian from Saxony, known for his works on natural theology and moral philosophy.
2. Friedrich Goetzmann (1796-1859), a German architect and urban planner from Baden, who designed several notable buildings in Karlsruhe and Freiburg.
3. Wilhelm Goetzmann (1834-1911), a German-American academic and author, who served as a professor of German literature at Harvard University.
4. Gerhard Goetzmann (1876-1945), a German lawyer and politician from Bavaria, who served as a member of the Reichstag during the Weimar Republic.
5. Louis Goetzmann (1887-1963), a German-American artist and illustrator, known for his paintings depicting scenes from the American West and his work for various publications.
While the name Goetzmann has its roots in Germany, it has since spread to other parts of Europe and the Americas, reflecting the migration patterns of German-speaking communities over the centuries. However, the earliest records and historical references to this surname can be traced back to the late medieval period in central and southern Germany, where it emerged as a patronymic name reflecting the religious or spiritual qualities of its original bearer.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Goetzmann
Among Census respondents with the surname Goetzmann, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (7.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Goetzmann 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 Goetzmann surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.2% · 97
- Two or more races7.3% · 8
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.7% · 3
- Hispanic or Latino1.8% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Goetzmann
Goetzmann 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
#131,379
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 129
+11 bearers (+9.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 880 places
2020
#149,446
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
-19 bearers (-14.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 18,067 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #132,259 | 118 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #131,379 | 129 | 0.04 | +11 bearers (+9.3%) | Up 880 places |
| 2020 | #149,446 | 110 | 0.04 | -19 bearers (-14.7%) | Down 18,067 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 Goetzmann 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 | #131,379 | #149,446 | -13.8% |
| Count | 129 | 110 | -14.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -8.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Goetzmann bearers went from 129 to 110 (-14.7% change). The surname moved down 18,067 positions in the national ranking, going from #131,379 to #149,446.
FAQ
Goetzmann surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Goetzmann?
Name Census estimates that about 126 living Americans carry the surname Goetzmann. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,720,273 residents.
How common is Goetzmann?
Goetzmann ranks #149,446 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 110 people with the surname Goetzmann. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (126), 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 Goetzmann.
Has Goetzmann become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Goetzmann went from 129 recorded bearers to 110. That is a decrease of 19 (-14.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #131,379 to #149,446.
What does the Census say about the background of Goetzmann?
Among Census respondents with the surname Goetzmann, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (7.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.7%). 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 Goetzmann in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.2% (97 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Goetzmann appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.2%), Two or More Races (7.3%), Asian/Pacific Islander (2.7%). 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 Goetzmann (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 Goetzmann mean?
A German surname referring to a family or individual from the town of Götzmann. 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 Goetzmann (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 common is the surname Goetzmann?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people are called Goetzmann at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.