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

Heffelfinger, 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 Heffelfinger surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Heffelfinger in America

Heffelfinger is the 15681st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Heffelfinger surname appeared 1,861 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Heffelfinger.

We can also compare 2010 data for Heffelfinger 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 Heffelfinger

The surname Heffelfinger has its origins in Germany, with records indicating it first emerged in the 16th century. It is likely derived from the German words "hefe" meaning "yeast" and "finger," potentially referring to an occupation or trade involving baking or brewing. The earliest known spelling was "Heffelfingere."

In the late 16th century, the name appears in municipal records from the town of Mühlhausen in Thuringia, Germany. A Johannes Heffelfinger is listed as a resident in 1587. Around the same time, a Hans Heffelfinger is mentioned in a church register from the nearby village of Eichenberg.

The name Heffelfinger is not found in the famous Domesday Book, as this English survey was conducted in 1086, long before the surname emerged in Germany. However, it does appear in other historical documents from the region.

One of the earliest known bearers of the Heffelfinger name was Wilhelm Heffelfinger, born in 1612 in the town of Erfurt, Thuringia. He was a baker by trade, lending credence to the occupational origin theory of the name.

In the 18th century, a notable figure was Johann Georg Heffelfinger (1734-1809), a prominent Lutheran theologian and author from Saxony. His works included commentaries on biblical texts and discussions of church doctrine.

Another individual of note was Karl Friedrich Heffelfinger (1792-1867), a German politician and judge who served as a member of the Prussian House of Representatives in the mid-19th century.

In more recent times, one of the most famous Heffelfingers was Jacob Heffelfinger (1875-1944), an American football player and coach. He was a pioneering figure in the early days of the sport, playing for the Allegheny Athletic Association and coaching at various colleges including Geneva College and Washington & Jefferson College.

Finally, the 20th century saw Max Heffelfinger (1905-1981), a German-American architect who designed several notable buildings in Portland, Oregon, including the Forestry Building at the 1939 Golden Gate International Exposition.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Heffelfinger

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

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

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

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