2000
#124,872
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 127
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Heeder
A spelling variant of the German surname "Heder" meaning a heather plant or heather field.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 138 Americans carry the last name Heeder. That puts it at #142,049 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,483,727 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Heeder 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
138
1 in 2,483,727
Census rank
#142,049
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
120
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 120 bearers of the surname Heeder in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 142049th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Heeder, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.2%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Heeder
The surname "HEEDER" is believed to have originated in the German region during the Middle Ages. It is thought to be derived from the Old German word "hede," meaning "heather" or "heath." This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone who lived near or worked on a heathland area.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name "HEEDER" can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae Regiae, a collection of historical documents from Saxony, dating back to the 13th century. In this text, a person named "Heyder" is mentioned in a land transaction from the year 1287.
Another early reference to the name appears in the Lübecker Oberstadtbuch, a record of transactions and events in the city of Lübeck, Germany. In an entry from 1324, a person named "Heder" is listed as a witness to a legal agreement.
As the name spread throughout different regions of Germany, it underwent various spelling variations, such as "Heder," "Heyder," and "Heider." These variations were often influenced by local dialects and scribal practices.
One notable bearer of the name "HEEDER" was Johann Heeder, a German theologian and philosopher who lived in the late 16th century (1547-1598). He was a professor at the University of Wittenberg and authored several works on theology and philosophy.
Another prominent figure with this surname was Friedrich Heeder, a German painter and etcher who lived in the 19th century (1819-1892). He is known for his landscape paintings depicting scenes from the Bavarian Alps and the Black Forest region.
In the 18th century, a family named Heeder settled in the town of Kirchheim, in what is now the state of Hesse, Germany. One member of this family, Hans Heeder (1732-1804), is recorded as having been a respected farmer and landowner in the region.
A notable American with the surname "HEEDER" was John Heeder (1876-1957), a businessman and philanthropist from New York City. He founded the Heeder Manufacturing Company, which produced industrial machinery, and donated generously to various charitable causes.
In the United Kingdom, the name "HEEDER" can be traced back to the 19th century, when a family of that name settled in the county of Yorkshire. One member, William Heeder (1845-1912), was a prominent industrialist and inventor who held several patents for machinery used in textile manufacturing.
While the surname "HEEDER" is not among the most common in any particular region, it has a rich historical presence spanning several centuries and can be found in various parts of Europe and North America.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Heeder
Among Census respondents with the surname Heeder, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.2%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Heeder 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 Heeder surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.2% · 107
- Hispanic or Latino4.2% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.5% · 3
- Two or more races2.5% · 3
- Black or African American1.7% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Heeder
Heeder 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
#141,140
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 118
-9 bearers (-7.1%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 16,268 places
2020
#142,049
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 120
+2 bearers (+1.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 909 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #124,872 | 127 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #141,140 | 118 | 0.04 | -9 bearers (-7.1%) | Down 16,268 places |
| 2020 | #142,049 | 120 | 0.04 | +2 bearers (+1.7%) | Down 909 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 Heeder 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 | #141,140 | #142,049 | -0.6% |
| Count | 118 | 120 | 1.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | 0.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Heeder bearers went from 118 to 120 (+1.7% change). The surname moved down 909 positions in the national ranking, going from #141,140 to #142,049.
FAQ
Heeder surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Heeder?
Name Census estimates that about 138 living Americans carry the surname Heeder. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,483,727 residents.
How common is Heeder?
Heeder ranks #142,049 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 120 people with the surname Heeder. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (138), 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 Heeder.
Has Heeder become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Heeder went from 118 recorded bearers to 120. That is an increase of 2 (+1.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #141,140 to #142,049.
What does the Census say about the background of Heeder?
Among Census respondents with the surname Heeder, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.2%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.5%). 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 Heeder in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.2% (107 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Heeder appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.2%), Hispanic (4.2%), Asian/Pacific Islander (2.5%). 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 Heeder (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 Heeder mean?
A spelling variant of the German surname "Heder" meaning a heather plant or heather field. 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 Heeder (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 have the last name Heeder?
Want to know how many people have the last name Heeder? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.