Heide last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Heide

A German topographic surname referring to someone who lived on a heath or moor.

Heide, 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 Heide surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Heide in America

Heide is the 14662nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Heide surname appeared 2,029 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 Heide.

We can also compare 2010 data for Heide 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 14662 14115 3.80%
Count 2,029 1,956 3.66%
Proportion per 100k 0.69 0.73 -5.63%

The history of the last name Heide

The surname "HEIDE" is of German origin and can be traced back to the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Old German word "heida," which means "heath" or "uncultivated land." This suggests that the name was likely given to someone who lived near or worked on heathland or uncultivated areas.

The earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in various German records and documents from the 13th and 14th centuries. One notable example is a reference to a "Heinrich von der Heide" in a 1342 document from the city of Cologne. This indicates that the name was already in use by the mid-14th century, possibly even earlier.

During the late Middle Ages and Renaissance period, the name appeared in various forms, such as "Heyde," "Heyden," and "Heiden," reflecting regional variations in spelling and pronunciation. Some of these variants may have been influenced by the Dutch word "heide," which also means "heath."

One of the earliest notable individuals with the surname was Johann Heide, a German theologian and Protestant reformer born in 1497. He played a significant role in the early stages of the Protestant Reformation and was a close associate of Martin Luther.

Another prominent figure was Johann Gottfried von der Heide (1649-1720), a German jurist and diplomat who served as a councilor to the Elector of Brandenburg and later became a professor of law at the University of Helmstedt.

In the 18th century, Johann Elert Bode (1747-1826), a German astronomer and writer known for his popular astronomical works, was born with the surname Heide but later changed it to Bode. He made significant contributions to the study of celestial mechanics and the mapping of the night sky.

During the 19th century, a notable bearer of the name was Friedrich Heide (1813-1896), a German painter and etcher known for his landscapes and city views. His works are held in various museums and collections throughout Germany.

In the 20th century, Fritz Heide (1892-1966) was a German architect and urban planner who played a significant role in the reconstruction of Berlin after World War II. He was responsible for the design of several notable buildings and urban development projects in the city.

These are just a few examples of notable individuals who have borne the surname "HEIDE" throughout history, reflecting its German origins and its association with uncultivated land or heathlands.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Heide

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

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 Heide was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 91.28% 1,852
Non-Hispanic Black Only 0.89% 18
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 4.04% 82
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.30% 6
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 1.43% 29
Hispanic Origin 2.07% 42

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 Heide has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 91.28% 94.07% -3.01%
Black 0.89% (S)% (S)%
Asian and Pacific Islander 4.04% 2.56% 44.85%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.30% (S)% (S)%
Two or More Races 1.43% 0.92% 43.40%
Hispanic 2.07% 1.94% 6.48%

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

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

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"Heide last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on November 22, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/heide-surname-popularity/.

"Heide last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/heide-surname-popularity/. Accessed 22 November, 2024

Heide last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/heide-surname-popularity/.

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