2000
#126,400
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 125
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Hellwarth
A German surname meaning "guardian of hell" or "fortress defender".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 128 Americans carry the last name Hellwarth. That puts it at #147,954 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,677,768 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hellwarth 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
128
1 in 2,677,768
Census rank
#147,954
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
112
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 112 bearers of the surname Hellwarth in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 147954th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hellwarth, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.4%) and Two or More Races (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hellwarth
The surname Hellwarth is of German origin, tracing its roots back to the Middle Ages. It is believed to have originated in the region of Bavaria, where it was first documented in the 13th century. The name is likely a combination of the Germanic elements "hell" meaning "light" or "bright" and "warth" meaning "guard" or "watchman."
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Hellwarth can be found in the Bavarian town of Regensburg, where a certain Hans Hellwarth was mentioned in a municipal record dating back to 1387. This suggests that the name was already established in the region by the late 14th century.
During the 15th and 16th centuries, the Hellwarth name began to spread across other parts of Germany, with members of the family appearing in various historical records and chronicles. In 1492, a Johann Hellwarth was listed as a citizen of Nuremberg, a prominent city in the Holy Roman Empire.
The Hellwarth name also found its way into the annals of religious history. In the 16th century, during the Protestant Reformation, a Benedictine monk named Michael Hellwarth (1503-1564) became a prominent figure in the reformist movement, authoring several theological works that challenged the Catholic Church's teachings.
In the 17th century, a notable Hellwarth was Georg Hellwarth (1621-1692), a German jurist and legal scholar who served as a professor of law at the University of Jena. His writings on Roman law and legal philosophy were widely influential during his time.
Another important figure bearing the Hellwarth name was Johann Friedrich Hellwarth (1719-1789), a German Lutheran theologian and philosopher who taught at the University of Tübingen. He was known for his work on natural theology and his contributions to the Enlightenment movement.
As the Hellwarth family spread across Germany and beyond, the name underwent various spelling variations, such as Hellwart, Hellwardt, and Hellwarth. Additionally, some branches of the family adopted compound surnames, such as Hellwarth-Müller or Hellwarth-Schmidt, reflecting intermarriages with other families.
While the Hellwarth name has its origins in Germany, it has since been carried to other parts of the world through migration and diaspora. However, its historical roots and linguistic connections to the Germanic languages remain a testament to its rich heritage and the stories of the individuals who bore this surname throughout the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hellwarth
Among Census respondents with the surname Hellwarth, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.4%) and Two or More Races (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Hellwarth 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 Hellwarth surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.9% · 104
- Hispanic or Latino5.4% · 6
- Two or more races1.8% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hellwarth
Hellwarth 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
#144,141
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
-10 bearers (-8.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 17,741 places
2020
#147,954
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
-3 bearers (-2.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 3,813 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #126,400 | 125 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #144,141 | 115 | 0.04 | -10 bearers (-8.0%) | Down 17,741 places |
| 2020 | #147,954 | 112 | 0.04 | -3 bearers (-2.6%) | Down 3,813 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 Hellwarth 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 | #144,141 | #147,954 | -2.6% |
| Count | 115 | 112 | -2.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -6.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hellwarth bearers went from 115 to 112 (-2.6% change). The surname moved down 3,813 positions in the national ranking, going from #144,141 to #147,954.
FAQ
Hellwarth surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hellwarth?
Name Census estimates that about 128 living Americans carry the surname Hellwarth. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,677,768 residents.
How common is Hellwarth?
Hellwarth ranks #147,954 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 112 people with the surname Hellwarth. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (128), 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 Hellwarth.
Has Hellwarth become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hellwarth went from 115 recorded bearers to 112. That is a decrease of 3 (-2.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #144,141 to #147,954.
What does the Census say about the background of Hellwarth?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hellwarth, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.4%) and Two or More Races (1.8%). 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 Hellwarth in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.9% (104 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hellwarth appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.9%), Hispanic (5.4%), Two or More Races (1.8%). 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 Hellwarth (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 Hellwarth mean?
A German surname meaning "guardian of hell" or "fortress defender". 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 Hellwarth (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 are called Hellwarth?
If you just want to know how many people have the surname Hellwarth, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.