2000
#13,618
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,044
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.76
Rare Last name
Hepp
Derived from the German word for a billhook or pruning knife, likely referring to a tool maker or farmer.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,199 Americans carry the last name Hepp. That puts it at #14,834 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.64 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 155,868 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hepp 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
2.2K
1 in 155,868
Census rank
#14,834
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,918 bearers of the surname Hepp in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.64 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14834th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hepp, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (3.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hepp
The surname Hepp is believed to have originated in Germany, with roots tracing back to the medieval period. It is thought to derive from the Old German word "heppe," which referred to a type of basket or wicker container used for carrying goods. This suggests that the name may have initially been an occupational surname, referring to someone who made or sold such baskets.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Hepp surname can be found in the 14th century records of the town of Nuremberg, where a certain Hans Hepp is mentioned as a resident. This provides evidence that the name was already established in southern Germany by that time.
In the 15th century, there are records of a Johannes Hepp, a scholar and clergyman from the city of Heidelberg. He was born around 1430 and is known for his work as a professor of theology at the University of Heidelberg.
The Hepp surname also appears in several historical documents from the 16th and 17th centuries, often in connection with various towns and villages in the regions of Bavaria and Saxony. For instance, there are references to a family of landowners named Hepp in the village of Rothenburg ob der Tauber during the late 1500s.
One notable bearer of the Hepp name was Johann Jakob Hepp, a German painter and engraver who lived from 1720 to 1790. He was born in Nuremberg and is known for his religious-themed works, many of which can still be found in churches throughout southern Germany.
Another significant figure was Karl Hepp, a German historian and archivist born in 1853 in the town of Marbach am Neckar. He published numerous works on the history of Württemberg and served as the director of the Württembergisches Staatsarchiv (State Archives of Württemberg) in the late 19th century.
While the Hepp surname is most strongly associated with Germany, there are also records of individuals with this name in neighboring countries like Switzerland and Austria, likely due to migration patterns over the centuries. However, the name appears to have its deepest roots in the German-speaking regions of central Europe.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hepp
Among Census respondents with the surname Hepp, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (3.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Hepp 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 Hepp surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.4% · 1,772
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 67
- Two or more races3.3% · 63
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 8
- Black or African American0.3% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hepp
Hepp 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
#15,020
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,966
-78 bearers (-3.8%)
Per 100,000 0.67
Rank movement Down 1,402 places
2020
#14,834
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,918
-48 bearers (-2.4%)
Per 100,000 0.64
Rank movement Up 186 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,618 | 2,044 | 0.76 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #15,020 | 1,966 | 0.67 | -78 bearers (-3.8%) | Down 1,402 places |
| 2020 | #14,834 | 1,918 | 0.64 | -48 bearers (-2.4%) | Up 186 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 Hepp 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 | #15,020 | #14,834 | 1.2% |
| Count | 1,966 | 1,918 | -2.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.67 | 0.64 | -4.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hepp bearers went from 1,966 to 1,918 (-2.4% change). The surname moved up 186 positions in the national ranking, going from #15,020 to #14,834.
FAQ
Hepp surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hepp?
Name Census estimates that about 2,199 living Americans carry the surname Hepp. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 155,868 residents.
How common is Hepp?
Hepp ranks #14,834 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.64 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 1,918 people with the surname Hepp. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,199), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.64 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.64 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 Hepp.
Has Hepp become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hepp went from 1,966 recorded bearers to 1,918. That is a decrease of 48 (-2.4%). In the national ranking it rose from #15,020 to #14,834.
What does the Census say about the background of Hepp?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hepp, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (3.3%). 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 Hepp in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.4% (1,772 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hepp appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.4%), Hispanic (3.5%), Two or More Races (3.3%). 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 Hepp (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 Hepp mean?
Derived from the German word for a billhook or pruning knife, likely referring to a tool maker or farmer. 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 Hepp (0.64 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 common is the surname Hepp?
You can see how many people have the surname Hepp on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.