2000
#10,837
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,700
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.00
Rare Last name
Henrich
Derived from the Germanic personal name Heinrich, meaning "home ruler" or "ruler of the household."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,472 Americans carry the last name Henrich. That puts it at #13,489 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.72 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 138,655 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Henrich 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 138,655
Census rank
#13,489
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,156 bearers of the surname Henrich in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.72 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13489th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Henrich, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.6%) and Two or More Races (3.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Henrich
The surname Henrich is of German origin, with its roots dating back to the medieval period. It is derived from the ancient Germanic name Heinrich, which is a combination of the elements "heim" meaning "home" and "ric" meaning "ruler" or "power." This name was popular among the nobility and ruling classes of German-speaking regions during the Middle Ages.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Henrich can be found in the Codex Traditionum Monasterii Sancti Galli, a medieval manuscript dating back to around the 9th century. This document contains records of land transactions and mentions individuals with the surname Henrich living in the region of present-day Switzerland.
During the 12th century, the Henrich surname gained prominence in the region of Saxony, which was a powerful duchy within the Holy Roman Empire. Several notable figures from this period bore the surname Henrich, including Heinrich von Veldeke, a renowned poet and author born around 1150 in what is now modern-day Belgium.
The Henrich surname also appeared in various historical records throughout the 13th and 14th centuries, including the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae Regiae, a collection of documents related to the Margraviate of Meissen, a state within the Holy Roman Empire. These records mention several individuals with the surname Henrich who held positions of authority and influence within the region.
One of the most famous bearers of the Henrich surname was Johann Henrich Pestalozzi, a Swiss pedagogue and educational reformer born in 1746. Pestalozzi's innovative teaching methods and ideas on education had a significant impact on the development of modern educational systems across Europe and beyond.
Another notable figure with the surname Henrich was Johann Gottlob Henrich, a German composer and organist born in 1727. He was renowned for his compositions for the organ and his contributions to the development of church music in the 18th century.
Throughout the centuries, the Henrich surname has been associated with various place names and locations across German-speaking regions. Some examples include Henrichsburg, a town in the state of Saxony-Anhalt, and Henrichshütte, a former iron-making settlement in the Harz Mountains of Germany.
While the Henrich surname has its roots in the medieval period and has been carried by many notable figures throughout history, it continues to be a prevalent surname in modern times, particularly in Germany and other German-speaking regions, as well as among descendants of German emigrants around the world.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Henrich
Among Census respondents with the surname Henrich, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.6%) and Two or More Races (3.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Henrich 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 Henrich surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.3% · 1,989
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 77
- Two or more races3.0% · 65
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 18
- Black or African American0.3% · 7
Timeline
Historical Census data for Henrich
Henrich 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
#11,138
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,843
+143 bearers (+5.3%)
Per 100,000 0.96
Rank movement Down 301 places
2020
#13,489
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,156
-687 bearers (-24.2%)
Per 100,000 0.72
Rank movement Down 2,351 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,837 | 2,700 | 1.00 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,138 | 2,843 | 0.96 | +143 bearers (+5.3%) | Down 301 places |
| 2020 | #13,489 | 2,156 | 0.72 | -687 bearers (-24.2%) | Down 2,351 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 Henrich 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 | #11,138 | #13,489 | -21.1% |
| Count | 2,843 | 2,156 | -24.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.96 | 0.72 | -24.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Henrich bearers went from 2,843 to 2,156 (-24.2% change). The surname moved down 2,351 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,138 to #13,489.
FAQ
Henrich surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Henrich?
Name Census estimates that about 2,472 living Americans carry the surname Henrich. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 138,655 residents.
How common is Henrich?
Henrich ranks #13,489 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 2,156 people with the surname Henrich. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,472), 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 Henrich.
Has Henrich become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Henrich went from 2,843 recorded bearers to 2,156. That is a decrease of 687 (-24.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #11,138 to #13,489.
What does the Census say about the background of Henrich?
Among Census respondents with the surname Henrich, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.6%) and Two or More Races (3.0%). 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 Henrich in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.3% (1,989 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Henrich appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.3%), Hispanic (3.6%), Two or More Races (3.0%). 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 Henrich (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 Henrich mean?
Derived from the Germanic personal name Heinrich, meaning "home ruler" or "ruler of the household." 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 Henrich (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 are called Henrich?
Want to know how many Americans have the surname Henrich? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.