2000
#3,937
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,288
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.07
Rare Last name
Hermann
Derived from a Germanic personal name composed of the elements "hari" (army) and "man" (man).
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 9,626 Americans carry the last name Hermann. That puts it at #4,103 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.81 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 35,607 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hermann 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Hermann with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
9.6K
1 in 35,607
Census rank
#4,103
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
8.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 8,394 bearers of the surname Hermann in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.81 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4103rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hermann, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Two or More Races (3.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hermann
The surname HERMANN originated in Germany during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Germanic personal name Hermann, which is composed of the elements "heri" meaning army and "man" meaning man, essentially translating to "army man" or "soldier".
The earliest recorded instances of the surname HERMANN can be traced back to the 12th century in various regions of what is now modern-day Germany. It is believed to have first appeared in areas such as Bavaria, Saxony, and the Rhineland, where many bearers of the name were documented in medieval records and charters.
One of the earliest documented references to the surname HERMANN can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae, a collection of historical documents from Saxony dating back to the 11th century. This text mentions several individuals with the surname, suggesting its widespread use in the region during that time.
Notable historical figures who bore the surname HERMANN include Johannes HERMANN, a German botanist and physician who lived from 1528 to 1605. He made significant contributions to the study of plant taxonomy and was one of the first to establish a systematic approach to plant classification.
Another prominent bearer of the name was Jakob HERMANN, a French-born German mathematician and scientist who lived from 1678 to 1733. He is best known for his work in the field of geometry and for his contributions to the development of the calculus of variations.
In the realm of literature, the German writer and poet Johann HERMANN, who lived from 1585 to 1647, is remembered for his religious and devotional poetry, which was widely popular during the Baroque period in Germany.
The surname HERMANN also has a connection to the world of music through the German composer Johann Gottfried HERMANN, who lived from 1707 to 1791. He was a prominent figure in the Baroque and Classical periods and is particularly known for his compositions for keyboard instruments.
Lastly, one of the most notable bearers of the surname HERMANN was the German philosopher and classical scholar Johann Gottfried Jakob HERMANN, who lived from 1772 to 1848. He made significant contributions to the study of ancient Greek literature and philosophy and is considered a pioneering figure in the field of philology.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hermann
Among Census respondents with the surname Hermann, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Two or More Races (3.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Hermann 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 Hermann surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.4% · 7,669
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 314
- Two or more races3.1% · 257
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 79
- Black or African American0.6% · 52
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 23
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hermann
Hermann 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
#4,010
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,858
+570 bearers (+6.9%)
Per 100,000 3.00
Rank movement Down 73 places
2020
#4,103
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,394
-464 bearers (-5.2%)
Per 100,000 2.81
Rank movement Down 93 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,937 | 8,288 | 3.07 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,010 | 8,858 | 3.00 | +570 bearers (+6.9%) | Down 73 places |
| 2020 | #4,103 | 8,394 | 2.81 | -464 bearers (-5.2%) | 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 Hermann 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 | #4,010 | #4,103 | -2.3% |
| Count | 8,858 | 8,394 | -5.2% |
| Per 100K | 3.00 | 2.81 | -6.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hermann bearers went from 8,858 to 8,394 (-5.2% change). The surname moved down 93 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,010 to #4,103.
FAQ
Hermann surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hermann?
Name Census estimates that about 9,626 living Americans carry the surname Hermann. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 35,607 residents.
How common is Hermann?
Hermann ranks #4,103 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.81 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 8,394 people with the surname Hermann. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (9,626), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.81 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.81 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Hermann.
Has Hermann become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hermann went from 8,858 recorded bearers to 8,394. That is a decrease of 464 (-5.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #4,010 to #4,103.
What does the Census say about the background of Hermann?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hermann, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Two or More Races (3.1%). 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 Hermann in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.4% (7,669 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hermann appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.4%), Hispanic (3.7%), Two or More Races (3.1%). 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 Hermann (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 Hermann mean?
Derived from a Germanic personal name composed of the elements "hari" (army) and "man" (man). 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 Hermann (2.81 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 Hermann?
Want to know how many people are called Hermann? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.