2010
#158,432
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.03
Very Rare Last name
Gritzinger
A surname derived from a Germanic personal name meaning someone from the village of Gritzingen.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 111 Americans carry the last name Gritzinger. That puts it at #156,449 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 3,087,877 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Gritzinger 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
111
1 in 3,087,877
Census rank
#156,449
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
97
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 97 bearers of the surname Gritzinger in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 156449th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Gritzinger, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.1%) and Hispanic (1.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Gritzinger
The surname Gritzinger originated in the German-speaking regions of Europe, most likely in the late medieval period around the 13th or 14th century. It is believed to have its roots in the Middle High German word "gritzen," which meant "to gnash or grind the teeth." This could suggest that the name was initially a descriptive nickname for someone with a particular facial expression or mannerism.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Gritzinger can be found in a document from the town of Augsburg, Germany, dated 1497, which mentions a certain "Hans Gritzinger." This suggests that the name had already been established in the region by the late 15th century.
In the 16th century, the name appears in various records from the German states of Bavaria and Saxony, indicating its spread across different regions. For example, a record from 1532 in the city of Leipzig mentions a "Peter Gritzinger," a merchant trader.
The Gritzinger name is also associated with several notable individuals throughout history. One of the earliest was Johann Gritzinger (1523-1591), a German Protestant theologian and educator who served as the rector of the University of Wittenberg during the latter part of the Reformation era.
Another prominent figure was Karl Gritzinger (1847-1923), an Austrian architect and designer who was influential in the Historicist and Art Nouveau movements. He is best known for his work on the Vienna State Opera House and several other notable buildings in the Austrian capital.
In the 19th century, the name appears in various records from the German-speaking regions of Europe, including a mention of a "Josef Gritzinger" in an 1865 census from the Bohemian town of Pilsen (now Plzeň, Czech Republic).
One of the most notable figures with the Gritzinger name in more recent history was Friedrich Gritzinger (1912-1997), a German businessman and entrepreneur who founded the successful Gritzinger AG, a company specializing in agricultural machinery and equipment.
Overall, the surname Gritzinger has a rich history rooted in the German-speaking regions of Europe, with its earliest known origins dating back to the late medieval period. Despite its relative rarity, the name has produced several notable individuals across various fields throughout the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gritzinger
Among Census respondents with the surname Gritzinger, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.1%) and Hispanic (1.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Gritzinger 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 Gritzinger surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White95.9% · 93
- Two or more races3.1% · 3
- Hispanic or Latino1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Gritzinger
Gritzinger appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#156,449
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 97
-5 bearers (-4.9%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Up 1,983 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #158,432 | 102 | 0.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #156,449 | 97 | 0.03 | -5 bearers (-4.9%) | Up 1,983 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 Gritzinger 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 | #158,432 | #156,449 | 1.3% |
| Count | 102 | 97 | -4.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.03 | 8.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Gritzinger bearers went from 102 to 97 (-4.9% change). The surname moved up 1,983 positions in the national ranking, going from #158,432 to #156,449.
FAQ
Gritzinger surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Gritzinger?
Name Census estimates that about 111 living Americans carry the surname Gritzinger. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 3,087,877 residents.
How common is Gritzinger?
Gritzinger ranks #156,449 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 97 people with the surname Gritzinger. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (111), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Gritzinger.
Has Gritzinger become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Gritzinger went from 102 recorded bearers to 97. That is a decrease of 5 (-4.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #158,432 to #156,449.
What does the Census say about the background of Gritzinger?
Among Census respondents with the surname Gritzinger, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.1%) and Hispanic (1.0%). 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 Gritzinger in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.9% (93 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Gritzinger appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (95.9%), Two or More Races (3.1%), Hispanic (1.0%). 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 Gritzinger (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 Gritzinger mean?
A surname derived from a Germanic personal name meaning someone from the village of Gritzingen. 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 Gritzinger (0.03 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 Gritzinger?
See how many people have the last name Gritzinger on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.