2000
#78,549
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 226
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.08
Very Rare Last name
Graupner
A surname derived from the German word "Graupner" meaning a maker or seller of coarse fabric.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 260 Americans carry the last name Graupner. That puts it at #87,947 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.08 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,318,286 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Graupner 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
260
1 in 1,318,286
Census rank
#87,947
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
227
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 227 bearers of the surname Graupner in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.08 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 87947th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Graupner, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.2%) and Two or More Races (3.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Graupner
The surname "GRAUPNER" is of German origin, deriving from the Old High German word "graupen," which means "peeled barley" or "groats." This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who worked with or traded in these grains, perhaps a miller or a farmer.
The earliest known records of the name date back to the 13th century in regions of present-day Germany, particularly in areas like Saxony and Thuringia. One of the earliest documented instances is found in a land registry from 1284, listing a "Conradus Graupner" as a landowner in the village of Niederau, near Chemnitz.
In the late 15th century, a variant spelling, "Graubner," appeared in church records from the town of Zwickau, indicating the name's spread and potential regional variations. This spelling may have stemmed from the local dialect's pronunciation of the original "Graupner."
One notable historical figure with this surname was Johann Christian Gottlieb Graupner (1767-1836), a German composer and organist who served as the Kapellmeister (music director) at the court of Darmstadt. His works include numerous operas, cantatas, and instrumental pieces.
Another prominent individual was Carl Heinrich Graupner (1744-1823), a German lawyer and legal scholar who served as a judge and authored several influential treatises on civil law and judicial procedure.
In the 19th century, the name appeared in records from various parts of Germany, including a Johann Graupner (1810-1888), a successful businessman and landowner in the town of Freiburg im Breisgau.
The name also found its way to other parts of Europe, as evidenced by the birth of Frantisek Graupner (1875-1942), a Czech painter and illustrator known for his vibrant landscapes and portraits of rural life.
It is worth noting that the name "Graupner" has also been associated with several place names in Germany, such as Graupnersdorf, a village in Saxony, and Graupnerhof, a former estate near Dresden, suggesting a potential link between the surname and geographic locations.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Graupner
Among Census respondents with the surname Graupner, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.2%) and Two or More Races (3.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Graupner 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 Graupner surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.4% · 203
- Hispanic or Latino6.2% · 14
- Two or more races3.5% · 8
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Graupner
Graupner 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
#85,357
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 219
-7 bearers (-3.1%)
Per 100,000 0.07
Rank movement Down 6,808 places
2020
#87,947
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 227
+8 bearers (+3.7%)
Per 100,000 0.08
Rank movement Down 2,590 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #78,549 | 226 | 0.08 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #85,357 | 219 | 0.07 | -7 bearers (-3.1%) | Down 6,808 places |
| 2020 | #87,947 | 227 | 0.08 | +8 bearers (+3.7%) | Down 2,590 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 Graupner 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 | #85,357 | #87,947 | -3.0% |
| Count | 219 | 227 | 3.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.07 | 0.08 | 8.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Graupner bearers went from 219 to 227 (+3.7% change). The surname moved down 2,590 positions in the national ranking, going from #85,357 to #87,947.
FAQ
Graupner surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Graupner?
Name Census estimates that about 260 living Americans carry the surname Graupner. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,318,286 residents.
How common is Graupner?
Graupner ranks #87,947 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.08 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 227 people with the surname Graupner. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (260), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.08 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.08 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 Graupner.
Has Graupner become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Graupner went from 219 recorded bearers to 227. That is an increase of 8 (+3.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #85,357 to #87,947.
What does the Census say about the background of Graupner?
Among Census respondents with the surname Graupner, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.2%) and Two or More Races (3.5%). 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 Graupner in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.4% (203 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Graupner appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.4%), Hispanic (6.2%), Two or More Races (3.5%). 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 Graupner (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 Graupner mean?
A surname derived from the German word "Graupner" meaning a maker or seller of coarse fabric. 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 Graupner (0.08 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 Graupner?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.