2000
#6,438
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,864
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.80
Rare Last name
Harbaugh
Derived from a place name meaning "hill by a stream" in German.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,345 Americans carry the last name Harbaugh. That puts it at #6,945 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.56 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 64,126 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Harbaugh 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
5.3K
1 in 64,126
Census rank
#6,945
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,661 bearers of the surname Harbaugh in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.56 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6945th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Harbaugh, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.0%) and Hispanic (2.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Harbaugh
The surname HARBAUGH is of Germanic origin, specifically from the German language. It is believed to have emerged in the regions of present-day Germany and Switzerland during the Middle Ages, approximately between the 10th and 14th centuries.
The name HARBAUGH is thought to derive from the Old German word "harba," which means "army" or "warrior." It likely referred to an ancestor who was a soldier or a member of the military. Over time, it evolved into various spellings, such as Harbauer, Harbauer, and Harbough, before settling on the modern form of HARBAUGH.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name HARBAUGH can be found in the Stadtbücher (town records) of Nuremberg, Germany, dating back to the 14th century. These records mention individuals bearing variations of the name, such as Hans Harbauer and Peter Harbauer.
In the 15th century, the HARBAUGH name appeared in the Swiss city of Basel, where a family called Harbough resided. This family is believed to have migrated from Germany to Switzerland during that time period.
Notable individuals throughout history who bore the HARBAUGH surname include:
1. Johannes Harbaugh (1808-1860), a German-American Lutheran minister and author who played a significant role in the establishment of the Lutheran Church in the United States.
2. Henry Harbaugh (1817-1867), an American Lutheran minister, theologian, and poet, known for his works such as "Heavenly Home" and "The Blessed Life."
3. Wilhelm Harbaugh (1853-1926), a German-American businessman and politician who served as a member of the Pennsylvania State Senate in the late 19th century.
4. Thomas Craven Harbaugh (1900-1973), an American lawyer and judge who served as a United States District Judge for the Western District of Pennsylvania.
5. John Harbaugh (born 1962), a former American football coach and the current head coach of the Baltimore Ravens in the National Football League (NFL).
While the HARBAUGH name has its roots in German-speaking regions, it eventually spread to other parts of Europe and beyond, particularly through migration and immigration patterns. Today, the surname can be found in various countries around the world, with notable concentrations in the United States, Canada, and parts of Western Europe.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Harbaugh
Among Census respondents with the surname Harbaugh, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.0%) and Hispanic (2.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Harbaugh 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 Harbaugh surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.9% · 4,332
- Two or more races3.0% · 139
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 136
- Black or African American0.5% · 23
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 19
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.3% · 12
Timeline
Historical Census data for Harbaugh
Harbaugh 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
#6,873
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,895
+31 bearers (+0.6%)
Per 100,000 1.66
Rank movement Down 435 places
2020
#6,945
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,661
-234 bearers (-4.8%)
Per 100,000 1.56
Rank movement Down 72 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,438 | 4,864 | 1.80 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,873 | 4,895 | 1.66 | +31 bearers (+0.6%) | Down 435 places |
| 2020 | #6,945 | 4,661 | 1.56 | -234 bearers (-4.8%) | Down 72 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 Harbaugh 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 | #6,873 | #6,945 | -1.0% |
| Count | 4,895 | 4,661 | -4.8% |
| Per 100K | 1.66 | 1.56 | -6.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Harbaugh bearers went from 4,895 to 4,661 (-4.8% change). The surname moved down 72 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,873 to #6,945.
FAQ
Harbaugh surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Harbaugh?
Name Census estimates that about 5,345 living Americans carry the surname Harbaugh. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 64,126 residents.
How common is Harbaugh?
Harbaugh ranks #6,945 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.56 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 4,661 people with the surname Harbaugh. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,345), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.56 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.56 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Harbaugh.
Has Harbaugh become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Harbaugh went from 4,895 recorded bearers to 4,661. That is a decrease of 234 (-4.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #6,873 to #6,945.
What does the Census say about the background of Harbaugh?
Among Census respondents with the surname Harbaugh, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.0%) and Hispanic (2.9%). 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 Harbaugh in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.9% (4,332 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Harbaugh 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 (3.0%), Hispanic (2.9%). 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 Harbaugh (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 Harbaugh mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "hill by a stream" in German. 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 Harbaugh (1.56 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 Harbaugh?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.