Find out how popular the last name Greiner is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Greiner.

Greiner, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Greiner surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Greiner in America

Greiner is the 3978th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Greiner surname appeared 8,935 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 3 people would have the surname Greiner.

We can also compare 2010 data for Greiner to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Greiner

The surname Greiner is of German origin and can be traced back to the 13th century. It is derived from the Old German word "grün," meaning "green," and was originally used as a descriptive surname for someone who lived near a green or grassy area or worked as a gardener or farmer.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Greiner can be found in a historical document from the city of Nuremberg, dated 1292, which mentions a person named Heinz Greiner. This suggests that the name was already in use in the region during the late Middle Ages.

In the 15th century, a variant spelling of the name, "Grüner," appeared in the records of the town of Rothenburg ob der Tauber, where a family with this surname held significant influence and owned several properties.

The name Greiner is also linked to various place names in Germany, such as Grünenbach, Grünenplan, and Grünfeld, indicating that some families may have taken their surname from the place they lived or originated.

Notable individuals with the surname Greiner throughout history include:

1. Christoph Greiner (1628-1697), a German composer and organist from Nuremberg.
2. Johann Greiner (1760-1836), a German painter and engraver from Augsburg.
3. Karl Greiner (1864-1942), a German architect and urban planner who designed several public buildings in Berlin.
4. Erich Greiner (1891-1966), a German military officer who served in World War I and World War II, reaching the rank of General.
5. Walther Greiner (1935-present), a German theoretical physicist known for his contributions to the field of nuclear physics.

While the surname Greiner has its roots in Germany, it has since spread to other parts of the world through immigration and has been adopted by families of various cultural backgrounds.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Greiner

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Greiner.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Greiner was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Greiner has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Greiner was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Greiner, please contact us.

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!