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

Hammerschmidt, 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 Hammerschmidt surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Hammerschmidt in America

Hammerschmidt is the 23354th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Hammerschmidt surname appeared 1,090 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Hammerschmidt.

We can also compare 2010 data for Hammerschmidt 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 Hammerschmidt

The surname Hammerschmidt has its origins in Germany, dating back to the Middle Ages. It is a compound name derived from the German words "Hammer," meaning hammer, and "Schmidt," meaning smith or blacksmith. This suggests that the name likely originated from an ancestor who worked as a blacksmith or metal worker, using a hammer as their primary tool.

The name can be traced back to various regions within Germany, including Bavaria, Saxony, and Thuringia, where metalworking and blacksmithing were prevalent occupations. The earliest recorded instances of the name appear in official records and manuscripts from the 14th and 15th centuries, often spelled in slightly different variations such as Hammersmith, Hamerschmid, or Hammerschmidt.

One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Johann Hammerschmidt, a German composer and organist born in 1611 in Bruck, Saxony. He was renowned for his sacred music compositions and served as the Kapellmeister (chapel master) at the court of Zittau.

Another notable figure with this surname was Johann Andreas Hammerschmidt, a German jurist and legal scholar born in 1611 in Braunschweig. He authored several influential works on German law and served as a professor of law at the University of Helmstedt.

In the 18th century, Johann Matthias Hammerschmidt (1702-1777) was a German theologian and philosopher who held the position of rector at the Gymnasium Illustre in Braunschweig. His writings on ethics and moral philosophy were widely studied during his time.

The name Hammerschmidt also appears in historical records from other German-speaking regions, such as Austria and Switzerland. For instance, Karl Hammerschmidt (1801-1874) was an Austrian painter and lithographer known for his landscapes and architectural works.

Another notable figure was Hermann Hammerschmidt (1819-1909), a Swiss politician and jurist who served as a member of the Swiss Federal Council and held the position of President of the Swiss Confederation in 1890.

Throughout its history, the surname Hammerschmidt has been associated with various professions, including metalworking, law, theology, and the arts, reflecting the diverse backgrounds and contributions of those who bore this name.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Hammerschmidt

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

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 Hammerschmidt 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 Hammerschmidt 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 Hammerschmidt was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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