2000
#47,939
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 415
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.15
Very Rare Last name
Heigl
A German surname from a place name meaning "small town" or "village".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 509 Americans carry the last name Heigl. That puts it at #50,816 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.15 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 673,388 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Heigl 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
509
1 in 673,388
Census rank
#50,816
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
444
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 444 bearers of the surname Heigl in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.15 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 50816th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Heigl, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.3%) and Black (1.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Heigl
The surname HEIGL is of German origin, with roots dating back to the late Middle Ages. It is believed to have originated in the southern regions of Germany, particularly in Bavaria and the surrounding areas.
HEIGL is thought to be derived from the old German word "hëigir," which means "hedgehog." This suggests that the name may have initially been a descriptive nickname or occupational name for someone who hunted or worked with hedgehogs or their quills.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name HEIGL can be found in a 14th-century document from the town of Augsburg, Bavaria. This document mentions a certain "Heinrich Heigl," suggesting that the name had already been established by that time.
In the 16th century, the HEIGL name appeared in several church records and tax rolls in the Bavarian towns of Landshut and Regensburg. This indicates that the name was relatively widespread in the region during that period.
A notable historical figure bearing the HEIGL surname was Johann Heigl, a German painter and engraver who lived from 1637 to 1712. He was known for his intricate etchings and engravings depicting religious and mythological scenes.
Another notable HEIGL was Maximilian Heigl, a Bavarian soldier and officer who fought in the Napoleonic Wars during the early 19th century. He was born in 1782 and died in 1856.
In the late 19th century, a German-American named Wilhelm Heigl immigrated to the United States and settled in Pennsylvania. He was born in 1845 and became a prominent figure in the local German-American community.
The name HEIGL has also been associated with several place names in Germany, such as Heiglhof and Heiglheim, which may have contributed to the development and spread of the surname in different regions.
One of the most famous individuals with the HEIGL surname in modern times is Katherine Heigl, the American actress known for her roles in films and television shows such as "Grey's Anatomy" and "Knocked Up." She was born in 1978.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Heigl
Among Census respondents with the surname Heigl, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.3%) and Black (1.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Heigl 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 Heigl surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.1% · 418
- Two or more races2.3% · 10
- Black or African American1.4% · 6
- Hispanic or Latino1.4% · 6
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Heigl
Heigl 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
#49,723
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 422
+7 bearers (+1.7%)
Per 100,000 0.14
Rank movement Down 1,784 places
2020
#50,816
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 444
+22 bearers (+5.2%)
Per 100,000 0.15
Rank movement Down 1,093 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #47,939 | 415 | 0.15 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #49,723 | 422 | 0.14 | +7 bearers (+1.7%) | Down 1,784 places |
| 2020 | #50,816 | 444 | 0.15 | +22 bearers (+5.2%) | Down 1,093 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 Heigl 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 | #49,723 | #50,816 | -2.2% |
| Count | 422 | 444 | 5.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.14 | 0.15 | 6.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Heigl bearers went from 422 to 444 (+5.2% change). The surname moved down 1,093 positions in the national ranking, going from #49,723 to #50,816.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Heigl
FAQ
Heigl surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Heigl?
Name Census estimates that about 509 living Americans carry the surname Heigl. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 673,388 residents.
How common is Heigl?
Heigl ranks #50,816 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.15 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 444 people with the surname Heigl. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (509), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.15 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.15 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 Heigl.
Has Heigl become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Heigl went from 422 recorded bearers to 444. That is an increase of 22 (+5.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #49,723 to #50,816.
What does the Census say about the background of Heigl?
Among Census respondents with the surname Heigl, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.3%) and Black (1.4%). 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 Heigl in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.1% (418 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Heigl appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.1%), Two or More Races (2.3%), Black (1.4%). 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 Heigl (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 Heigl mean?
A German surname from a place name meaning "small town" or "village". 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 Heigl (0.15 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 Heigl?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how common the surname Heigl is at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.