2000
#136,783
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Haftl
A surname derived from the German word "Haftel" meaning small hook or clasp.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 128 Americans carry the last name Haftl. That puts it at #147,954 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,677,768 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Haftl 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
128
1 in 2,677,768
Census rank
#147,954
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
112
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 112 bearers of the surname Haftl in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 147954th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Haftl, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Haftl
The surname HAFTL originated in Germany during the late 15th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old High German word "haft," meaning "to hold" or "to grasp." This suggests that the name may have been initially given as a descriptive nickname to someone who had a strong grip or held a particular occupation that required grasping or holding objects.
The earliest known record of the HAFTL surname can be traced back to the town of Nuremberg in Bavaria, where a family bearing this name is mentioned in local church records from the late 1400s. Around the same time, variations of the spelling, such as "Haftel" and "Haftelen," appear in regional documents and tax rolls.
In the 16th century, the HAFTL name began to spread beyond Nuremberg to other parts of Germany, particularly in the regions of Saxony and Thuringia. This was likely due to the movement of people during the Protestant Reformation and the associated social and economic upheaval.
Notable individuals who bore the HAFTL surname include Johann Haftl (1527-1592), a prominent Lutheran theologian and scholar who taught at the University of Wittenberg. Another noteworthy figure was Katharina Haftl (1634-1701), a renowned midwife and herbalist from the town of Erfurt, whose practical knowledge and expertise were highly regarded in her time.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the HAFTL name continued to be found in various German-speaking areas, sometimes appearing in local records with slight spelling variations such as "Haftell" or "Haftel." One example is Hans Haftl (1697-1773), a respected clockmaker from the town of Augsburg, whose intricate timepieces were prized by local nobility.
In the 19th century, as industrialization and urbanization took hold, members of the HAFTL family began to migrate to larger cities and other parts of Europe in search of employment opportunities. This included individuals like Wilhelm Haftl (1821-1891), a skilled metalworker who settled in Vienna, Austria, and became a respected figure in the city's thriving metalworking industry.
Another notable bearer of the HAFTL name was Elise Haftl (1876-1949), a pioneering educator and advocate for women's rights, who founded one of the first vocational schools for girls in Berlin, Germany.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Haftl
Among Census respondents with the surname Haftl, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Haftl 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 Haftl surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.0% · 103
- Two or more races5.4% · 6
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.8% · 2
- Hispanic or Latino0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Haftl
Haftl 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
#144,141
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
+2 bearers (+1.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 7,358 places
2020
#147,954
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
-3 bearers (-2.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 3,813 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #136,783 | 113 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #144,141 | 115 | 0.04 | +2 bearers (+1.8%) | Down 7,358 places |
| 2020 | #147,954 | 112 | 0.04 | -3 bearers (-2.6%) | Down 3,813 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 Haftl 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 | #144,141 | #147,954 | -2.6% |
| Count | 115 | 112 | -2.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -6.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Haftl bearers went from 115 to 112 (-2.6% change). The surname moved down 3,813 positions in the national ranking, going from #144,141 to #147,954.
FAQ
Haftl surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Haftl?
Name Census estimates that about 128 living Americans carry the surname Haftl. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,677,768 residents.
How common is Haftl?
Haftl ranks #147,954 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 112 people with the surname Haftl. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (128), 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 Haftl.
Has Haftl become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Haftl went from 115 recorded bearers to 112. That is a decrease of 3 (-2.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #144,141 to #147,954.
What does the Census say about the background of Haftl?
Among Census respondents with the surname Haftl, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.8%). 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 Haftl in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.0% (103 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Haftl appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.0%), Two or More Races (5.4%), Asian/Pacific Islander (1.8%). 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 Haftl (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 Haftl mean?
A surname derived from the German word "Haftel" meaning small hook or clasp. 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 Haftl (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 many people are called Haftl?
Want to know how many people have the last name Haftl? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.