2000
#134,929
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Haverlah
A habitational surname deriving from a place name, likely of German origin.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 127 Americans carry the last name Haverlah. That puts it at #148,665 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,698,853 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Haverlah 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
127
1 in 2,698,853
Census rank
#148,665
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
111
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 111 bearers of the surname Haverlah in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 148665th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Haverlah, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (9.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Haverlah
The surname Haverlah has its origins in Germany, dating back to the medieval period. It is believed to have originated from a place name, possibly a location in Lower Saxony or another region of northern Germany. The name itself may be derived from Old German words related to hafer, meaning "oats," or haben, meaning "to have," suggesting a connection to an agricultural settlement or landholding.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Haverlah can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Anhaltinus, a collection of historical documents from the principality of Anhalt, dated to the 13th century. This document mentions a certain Henricus de Haverlah, likely a local landowner or nobleman from the region.
During the 15th century, the Haverlah name appears in various municipal records and ecclesiastical registers across northern Germany, indicating its widespread presence. One notable figure from this era was Johannes Haverlah, a renowned scholar and theologian born in Lüneburg in 1472, who later became a professor at the University of Rostock.
In the 16th century, the Haverlah family gained prominence in the city of Bremen, where several members served as merchants, aldermen, and civic officials. Among them was Gerhard Haverlah (1525-1591), a successful trader and influential member of the city council.
The 17th century saw the Haverlah name spread further across Germany, with some branches establishing themselves in the Prussian regions of Brandenburg and Silesia. One prominent individual from this period was Otto von Haverlah (1639-1705), a Prussian military officer who served in the army of the Great Elector Frederick William.
As the Haverlah surname continued to disperse throughout the German states in the 18th and 19th centuries, it also began to appear in various spelling variations, such as Haverla, Haverland, and Haverland-Haverlah. Notable figures from this era include the writer and philosopher Johann Gottlieb Haverlah (1770-1829), born in Saxony, and the Prussian statesman and diplomat Hermann von Haverlah (1818-1892), who played a significant role in the unification of Germany.
Throughout its long history, the Haverlah surname has been associated with individuals from various walks of life, including scholars, military personnel, merchants, and civil servants. While its exact origins may remain shrouded in the mists of time, the name continues to carry a distinct Germanic heritage and a connection to the northern regions of Germany.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Haverlah
Among Census respondents with the surname Haverlah, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (9.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Haverlah 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 Haverlah surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.1% · 100
- Hispanic or Latino9.9% · 11
Timeline
Historical Census data for Haverlah
Haverlah 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
#145,220
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
-1 bearers (-0.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 10,291 places
2020
#148,665
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
-3 bearers (-2.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 3,445 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #134,929 | 115 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #145,220 | 114 | 0.04 | -1 bearers (-0.9%) | Down 10,291 places |
| 2020 | #148,665 | 111 | 0.04 | -3 bearers (-2.6%) | Down 3,445 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 Haverlah 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 | #145,220 | #148,665 | -2.4% |
| Count | 114 | 111 | -2.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -7.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Haverlah bearers went from 114 to 111 (-2.6% change). The surname moved down 3,445 positions in the national ranking, going from #145,220 to #148,665.
FAQ
Haverlah surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Haverlah?
Name Census estimates that about 127 living Americans carry the surname Haverlah. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,698,853 residents.
How common is Haverlah?
Haverlah ranks #148,665 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 111 people with the surname Haverlah. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (127), 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 Haverlah.
Has Haverlah become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Haverlah went from 114 recorded bearers to 111. That is a decrease of 3 (-2.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #145,220 to #148,665.
What does the Census say about the background of Haverlah?
Among Census respondents with the surname Haverlah, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (9.9%). 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 Haverlah in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.1% (100 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Haverlah appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.1%), Hispanic (9.9%). 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 Haverlah (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 Haverlah mean?
A habitational surname deriving from a place name, likely of German origin. 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 Haverlah (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 Haverlah?
Find out how many people have the last name Haverlah on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.