2000
#12,961
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,169
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.80
Rare Last name
Henrichs
A patronymic surname 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 2,432 Americans carry the last name Henrichs. That puts it at #13,676 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.71 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 140,935 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Henrichs 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
2.4K
1 in 140,935
Census rank
#13,676
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,121 bearers of the surname Henrichs in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.71 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13676th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Henrichs, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.7%) and Hispanic (2.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Henrichs
The surname Henrichs has its origins in Germany, where it first emerged during the medieval period. It is a patronymic name derived from the Germanic personal name Heinrich, which itself is composed of the elements "heim" meaning home and "ric" meaning power or ruler. Thus, the name Henrichs essentially means "son of Heinrich."
The name's earliest recorded examples can be traced back to the 12th century, with entries in various German chronicles and records. One notable mention is found in the Codex Traditionum Monasterii Mellicensis, a 12th-century manuscript detailing property transactions in the region around Melk Abbey in Lower Austria. This document includes references to individuals bearing the surname Henrichs.
During the 13th century, the name began to spread across various regions of Germany, particularly in areas such as Bavaria, Saxony, and the Rhineland. It is likely that the name's popularity was influenced by the prominence of several German rulers and noblemen who bore the name Heinrich, including Heinrich I, also known as Henry the Fowler, who ruled as King of East Francia from 919 to 936.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the surname Henrichs. One such figure was Johann Henrichs (1556-1628), a German theologian and Lutheran reformer who served as a professor at the University of Helmstedt. Another notable bearer of the name was Hans Henrichs (1869-1945), a German painter and illustrator known for his landscape paintings and book illustrations.
In the 16th century, the name Henrichs also appeared in various records and manuscripts related to the Reformation, as some individuals with this surname were involved in the Protestant movement. For example, Matthias Henrichs (1522-1599) was a German Lutheran theologian and reformer who played a role in the spread of Protestantism in the Duchy of Pomerania.
The name Henrichs has also been associated with several place names and older spellings of place names. For instance, the town of Henrichshütte in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia is named after a 19th-century ironworks founded by a man named Heinrich. Similarly, the village of Henrichenburg, also in North Rhine-Westphalia, derives its name from a castle built by a nobleman named Heinrich in the 13th century.
Other notable individuals with the surname Henrichs include Pieter Henrichs (1627-1667), a Dutch Golden Age painter known for his still-life paintings, and Theodor Henrichs (1884-1963), a German writer and journalist who authored several novels and short stories.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Henrichs
Among Census respondents with the surname Henrichs, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.7%) and Hispanic (2.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Henrichs 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 Henrichs surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.6% · 1,985
- Two or more races2.7% · 58
- Hispanic or Latino2.7% · 57
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 13
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 7
- Black or African American0.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Henrichs
Henrichs 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
#13,583
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,232
+63 bearers (+2.9%)
Per 100,000 0.76
Rank movement Down 622 places
2020
#13,676
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,121
-111 bearers (-5.0%)
Per 100,000 0.71
Rank movement Down 93 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,961 | 2,169 | 0.80 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,583 | 2,232 | 0.76 | +63 bearers (+2.9%) | Down 622 places |
| 2020 | #13,676 | 2,121 | 0.71 | -111 bearers (-5.0%) | Down 93 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 Henrichs 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 | #13,583 | #13,676 | -0.7% |
| Count | 2,232 | 2,121 | -5.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.76 | 0.71 | -6.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Henrichs bearers went from 2,232 to 2,121 (-5.0% change). The surname moved down 93 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,583 to #13,676.
FAQ
Henrichs surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Henrichs?
Name Census estimates that about 2,432 living Americans carry the surname Henrichs. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 140,935 residents.
How common is Henrichs?
Henrichs ranks #13,676 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.71 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 2,121 people with the surname Henrichs. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,432), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.71 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.71 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 Henrichs.
Has Henrichs become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Henrichs went from 2,232 recorded bearers to 2,121. That is a decrease of 111 (-5.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #13,583 to #13,676.
What does the Census say about the background of Henrichs?
Among Census respondents with the surname Henrichs, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.7%) and Hispanic (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 Henrichs in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.6% (1,985 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Henrichs appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.6%), Two or More Races (2.7%), Hispanic (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 Henrichs (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 Henrichs mean?
A patronymic surname 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 Henrichs (0.71 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 surname Henrichs?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.