2000
#6,987
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,424
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.64
Rare Last name
Grube
A German and Jewish (Ashkenazic) occupational surname referring to a miner or pit worker.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,875 Americans carry the last name Grube. That puts it at #7,543 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.42 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 70,309 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Grube 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
4.9K
1 in 70,309
Census rank
#7,543
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,251 bearers of the surname Grube in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.42 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7543rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Grube, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.1%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Grube
The surname Grube is of German origin and can be traced back to the 12th century. It is derived from the Old German word "gruobe," meaning a pit, trench, or quarry. This suggests that the name was likely originally an occupational surname, referring to a person who worked in a quarry or mine.
The name was particularly prevalent in the regions of Saxony and Bavaria, where mining and quarrying were common occupations. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in a document from the town of Chemnitz, Saxony, dated 1286, which mentions a "Johannes Grube."
In the 14th century, the name began to spread to other parts of Germany, with mentions of individuals bearing the surname in cities like Nuremberg and Cologne. A notable figure from this era was Heinrich Grube, a prominent merchant and member of the city council in Nuremberg, who lived from around 1330 to 1395.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the Grube name appeared in various historical records, including church registers and tax rolls. One notable example is Hans Grube, a master stonemason from Augsburg, who was involved in the construction of several important buildings in the city between 1550 and 1580.
As people began to migrate to other parts of Europe and eventually to the Americas, the name spread further. In the 18th century, Johann Grube, born in 1722 in Saxony, emigrated to Pennsylvania and became one of the earliest settlers of the surname in the United States.
Other notable individuals with the Grube surname include Max Grube, a German mathematician and academic who lived from 1854 to 1934, and Wilhelm Grube, a German painter and illustrator born in 1855 who was known for his landscape paintings.
It is worth noting that variations of the spelling, such as Gruber and Gruben, also exist, reflecting the regional dialects and linguistic variations within Germany and other areas where the name was adopted.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Grube
Among Census respondents with the surname Grube, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.1%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Grube 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 Grube surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.6% · 3,935
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 131
- Two or more races2.8% · 118
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 29
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 22
- Black or African American0.4% · 16
Timeline
Historical Census data for Grube
Grube 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
#7,270
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,584
+160 bearers (+3.6%)
Per 100,000 1.55
Rank movement Down 283 places
2020
#7,543
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,251
-333 bearers (-7.3%)
Per 100,000 1.42
Rank movement Down 273 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,987 | 4,424 | 1.64 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,270 | 4,584 | 1.55 | +160 bearers (+3.6%) | Down 283 places |
| 2020 | #7,543 | 4,251 | 1.42 | -333 bearers (-7.3%) | Down 273 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 Grube 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 | #7,270 | #7,543 | -3.8% |
| Count | 4,584 | 4,251 | -7.3% |
| Per 100K | 1.55 | 1.42 | -8.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Grube bearers went from 4,584 to 4,251 (-7.3% change). The surname moved down 273 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,270 to #7,543.
FAQ
Grube surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Grube?
Name Census estimates that about 4,875 living Americans carry the surname Grube. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 70,309 residents.
How common is Grube?
Grube ranks #7,543 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.42 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 4,251 people with the surname Grube. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,875), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.42 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.42 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Grube.
Has Grube become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Grube went from 4,584 recorded bearers to 4,251. That is a decrease of 333 (-7.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,270 to #7,543.
What does the Census say about the background of Grube?
Among Census respondents with the surname Grube, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.1%) and Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Grube in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.6% (3,935 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Grube appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.6%), Hispanic (3.1%), Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Grube (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 Grube mean?
A German and Jewish (Ashkenazic) occupational surname referring to a miner or pit worker. 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 Grube (1.42 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 Grube?
Want to know how many Americans have the surname Grube? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.