2000
#35,106
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 608
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.23
Very Rare Last name
Hanawalt
A variant of the German surname "Hanwald" meaning "from the forest near the hen house".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 698 Americans carry the last name Hanawalt. That puts it at #39,043 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.20 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 491,052 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hanawalt 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
698
1 in 491,052
Census rank
#39,043
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
609
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 609 bearers of the surname Hanawalt in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.20 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 39043rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hanawalt, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.1%) and Hispanic (2.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hanawalt
The surname Hanawalt is believed to have originated in the region of Hesse, Germany, during the Middle Ages, around the 12th or 13th century. It is thought to be derived from the Old High German words "hana," meaning rooster, and "walt," meaning forest or woods. This suggests that the name may have referred to someone who lived near a forest where roosters or fowl were found.
One of the earliest known records of the name Hanawalt can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Anhaltinus, a collection of historical documents from the former Duchy of Anhalt, dated around 1350. The name appears as "Hanewalt" in this record, indicating a slight variation in spelling from the modern form.
In the 15th century, a man named Hans Hanawalt was recorded as a landowner in the town of Marburg, in the region of Hesse. This suggests that the name had gained some prominence in the area by that time.
During the 16th century, the Hanawalt surname appeared in several historical documents in the regions of Hesse and Westphalia, indicating that families bearing this name had spread across these areas of central and western Germany.
One notable figure with the surname Hanawalt was Johann Hanawalt, a Protestant theologian and scholar who lived from 1575 to 1644. He was born in Marburg and later served as a professor of theology at the University of Herborn.
Another individual of note was Wilhelm Hanawalt, a German-born artist and illustrator who lived from 1810 to 1888. He is known for his intricate etchings and engravings, many of which depicted landscapes and architectural scenes.
In the 19th century, the Hanawalt surname began to appear in records from the United States, indicating that some families had emigrated from Germany to North America. One such individual was Johann Hanawalt, who was born in Hesse in 1825 and later settled in Pennsylvania.
Another notable American with the Hanawalt surname was Charles Hanawalt, a lawyer and politician from Iowa, who lived from 1858 to 1935. He served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1911 to 1915.
Overall, the surname Hanawalt has a rich history rooted in the regions of central and western Germany, with records dating back to the Middle Ages. While its meaning may have originally referred to a geographic or occupational connection, the name has since been carried by various notable individuals across different fields and regions.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hanawalt
Among Census respondents with the surname Hanawalt, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.1%) and Hispanic (2.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Hanawalt 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 Hanawalt surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.9% · 566
- Two or more races3.1% · 19
- Hispanic or Latino2.3% · 14
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.3% · 8
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hanawalt
Hanawalt 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
#34,758
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 650
+42 bearers (+6.9%)
Per 100,000 0.22
Rank movement Up 348 places
2020
#39,043
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 609
-41 bearers (-6.3%)
Per 100,000 0.20
Rank movement Down 4,285 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #35,106 | 608 | 0.23 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #34,758 | 650 | 0.22 | +42 bearers (+6.9%) | Up 348 places |
| 2020 | #39,043 | 609 | 0.20 | -41 bearers (-6.3%) | Down 4,285 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 Hanawalt 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 | #34,758 | #39,043 | -12.3% |
| Count | 650 | 609 | -6.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.22 | 0.20 | -7.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hanawalt bearers went from 650 to 609 (-6.3% change). The surname moved down 4,285 positions in the national ranking, going from #34,758 to #39,043.
FAQ
Hanawalt surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hanawalt?
Name Census estimates that about 698 living Americans carry the surname Hanawalt. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 491,052 residents.
How common is Hanawalt?
Hanawalt ranks #39,043 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.20 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 609 people with the surname Hanawalt. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (698), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.2 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.20 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 Hanawalt.
Has Hanawalt become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hanawalt went from 650 recorded bearers to 609. That is a decrease of 41 (-6.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #34,758 to #39,043.
What does the Census say about the background of Hanawalt?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hanawalt, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.1%) and Hispanic (2.3%). 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 Hanawalt in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.9% (566 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hanawalt appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.9%), Two or More Races (3.1%), Hispanic (2.3%). 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 Hanawalt (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 Hanawalt mean?
A variant of the German surname "Hanwald" meaning "from the forest near the hen house". 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 Hanawalt (0.20 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 share the surname Hanawalt?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.