2000
#12,393
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,298
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.85
Rare Last name
Heineman
A German occupational surname derived from the Middle High German words "hein" (fence) and "man" (man), denoting a fence-maker or keeper.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,464 Americans carry the last name Heineman. That puts it at #13,522 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.72 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 139,105 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Heineman 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
2.5K
1 in 139,105
Census rank
#13,522
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,149 bearers of the surname Heineman in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.72 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13522nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Heineman, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Two or More Races (2.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Heineman
The surname Heineman originated in Germany during the late medieval period. It derives from the German personal name Hein, a diminutive form of Heinrich, combined with the suffix "-man" meaning "man." The name essentially translates to "little man of Heinrich."
One of the earliest recorded instances of this surname can be found in the Deutsches Familiennamen-Lexikon, a comprehensive dictionary of German family names, which documents a Heinemann living in Hesse as early as 1343. The name also appears in various historical records and manuscripts from the 14th and 15th centuries across various regions of Germany.
In the 16th century, the name Heineman began to spread beyond Germany's borders. Records show individuals bearing this surname in the Netherlands, where it was often spelled as "Heyneman" or "Heijneman." One notable bearer of the name was Willem Heyneman, a Dutch merchant and banker who lived from 1510 to 1575.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the Heineman surname continued to gain prominence across Europe. In England, the name was sometimes anglicized to "Heyman" or "Hyman." One notable English bearer of the name was Sir William Heyman, a Member of Parliament who lived from 1677 to 1732.
As the name spread across Europe, it also found its way to the Americas. In the United States, one of the earliest recorded bearers of the Heineman surname was Johann Heineman, a German immigrant who settled in Pennsylvania in the late 18th century.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the surname Heineman. This includes Gustav Heineman (1899-1976), a German-American painter and printmaker; Marjorie Heineman (1904-1993), an American philanthropist and art collector; and Dannie Heineman (1923-2016), a Belgian-American engineer and inventor best known for his work on the development of the compact disc.
Another notable bearer of the Heineman surname was Sir Benjamin Heineman (1913-2003), an English lawyer and businessman who served as the Chairman of the Rhodes Trust from 1976 to 1985. Additionally, there was Herman Heineman (1890-1976), a Dutch-American businessman who founded the Heineman Electric Company in the early 20th century.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Heineman
Among Census respondents with the surname Heineman, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Two or More Races (2.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Heineman 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 Heineman surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.9% · 1,974
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 80
- Two or more races2.7% · 59
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 20
- Black or African American0.6% · 12
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Heineman
Heineman 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
#11,478
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,741
+443 bearers (+19.3%)
Per 100,000 0.93
Rank movement Up 915 places
2020
#13,522
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,149
-592 bearers (-21.6%)
Per 100,000 0.72
Rank movement Down 2,044 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,393 | 2,298 | 0.85 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,478 | 2,741 | 0.93 | +443 bearers (+19.3%) | Up 915 places |
| 2020 | #13,522 | 2,149 | 0.72 | -592 bearers (-21.6%) | Down 2,044 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 Heineman 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 | #11,478 | #13,522 | -17.8% |
| Count | 2,741 | 2,149 | -21.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.93 | 0.72 | -22.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Heineman bearers went from 2,741 to 2,149 (-21.6% change). The surname moved down 2,044 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,478 to #13,522.
FAQ
Heineman surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Heineman?
Name Census estimates that about 2,464 living Americans carry the surname Heineman. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 139,105 residents.
How common is Heineman?
Heineman ranks #13,522 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.72 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,149 people with the surname Heineman. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,464), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.72 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.72 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Heineman.
Has Heineman become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Heineman went from 2,741 recorded bearers to 2,149. That is a decrease of 592 (-21.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #11,478 to #13,522.
What does the Census say about the background of Heineman?
Among Census respondents with the surname Heineman, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Two or More Races (2.7%). 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 Heineman in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.9% (1,974 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Heineman appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.9%), Hispanic (3.7%), Two or More Races (2.7%). 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 Heineman (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 Heineman mean?
A German occupational surname derived from the Middle High German words "hein" (fence) and "man" (man), denoting a fence-maker or keeper. 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 Heineman (0.72 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 Heineman?
You can see how many people have the surname Heineman on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.