2000
#140,756
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 109
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Hettenhausen
Locative surname referring to someone from a place called Hettenhausen.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 117 Americans carry the last name Hettenhausen. That puts it at #154,755 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,929,524 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hettenhausen 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
117
1 in 2,929,524
Census rank
#154,755
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
102
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 102 bearers of the surname Hettenhausen in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 154755th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hettenhausen, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.9%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (2.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hettenhausen
The surname Hettenhausen is of German origin and dates back to the late medieval period. It is derived from the place name Hettenhausen, a small village located in the region of Hesse, central Germany. The place name itself is likely derived from the Old High German words "hettan," meaning "to struggle or fight," and "husum," meaning "house" or "dwelling."
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Hettenhausen can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus, a collection of medieval documents from the region of Hesse, dating back to the 13th century. The entry mentions a certain "Johannes de Hettenhausen," suggesting that individuals from the village had already adopted the place name as a surname by that time.
In the 14th century, the name appeared in the Liber Census Daniae, a medieval census record from the Kingdom of Denmark, where a "Henricus Hettenhausen" was listed among the residents of the town of Ribe. This indicates that individuals bearing the surname had migrated to other parts of Northern Europe during that period.
During the Renaissance, a notable figure with the surname Hettenhausen was Johann Hettenhausen (1490-1551), a German theologian and reformer who played a significant role in the Protestant Reformation. He was a close associate of Martin Luther and participated in the Leipzig Disputation of 1519.
Another prominent individual was Friedrich von Hettenhausen (1633-1701), a Prussian general who served under the Great Elector, Frederick William of Brandenburg, and played a crucial role in the successful defense of the Duchy of Prussia during the Second Northern War against Sweden.
In the 18th century, the name Hettenhausen appeared in the records of the University of Göttingen, where a student named Wilhelm Hettenhausen (1756-1819) studied law and later became a respected jurist and legal scholar in the German states.
Towards the end of the 19th century, a notable figure was the German novelist and playwright, Theodor Hettenhausen (1872-1938), whose works often explored themes of social justice and the struggles of the working class.
It is also worth mentioning that variations of the place name have been recorded over the centuries, such as "Hettenhusyn," "Hettenhuysen," and "Hettenhausen," reflecting the evolution of spelling conventions and regional dialects.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hettenhausen
Among Census respondents with the surname Hettenhausen, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.9%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (2.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Hettenhausen 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 Hettenhausen surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.2% · 94
- Two or more races3.9% · 4
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.0% · 2
- Hispanic or Latino1.0% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hettenhausen
Hettenhausen 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
#159,712
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 101
-8 bearers (-7.3%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 18,956 places
2020
#154,755
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
+1 bearers (+1.0%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Up 4,957 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #140,756 | 109 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #159,712 | 101 | 0.03 | -8 bearers (-7.3%) | Down 18,956 places |
| 2020 | #154,755 | 102 | 0.03 | +1 bearers (+1.0%) | Up 4,957 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 Hettenhausen 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 | #159,712 | #154,755 | 3.1% |
| Count | 101 | 102 | 1.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.03 | 13.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hettenhausen bearers went from 101 to 102 (+1.0% change). The surname moved up 4,957 positions in the national ranking, going from #159,712 to #154,755.
FAQ
Hettenhausen surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hettenhausen?
Name Census estimates that about 117 living Americans carry the surname Hettenhausen. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,929,524 residents.
How common is Hettenhausen?
Hettenhausen ranks #154,755 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 102 people with the surname Hettenhausen. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (117), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Hettenhausen.
Has Hettenhausen become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hettenhausen went from 101 recorded bearers to 102. That is an increase of 1 (+1.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #159,712 to #154,755.
What does the Census say about the background of Hettenhausen?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hettenhausen, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.9%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (2.0%). 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 Hettenhausen in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.2% (94 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hettenhausen appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.2%), Two or More Races (3.9%), American Indian/Alaska Native (2.0%). 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 Hettenhausen (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 Hettenhausen mean?
Locative surname referring to someone from a place called Hettenhausen. 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 Hettenhausen (0.03 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 share the surname Hettenhausen?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.