2000
#123,314
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 129
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Highberg
A surname derived from a topographic location, likely referring to someone living on or near a high hill or mountain ridge.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 134 Americans carry the last name Highberg. That puts it at #144,270 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,557,868 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Highberg 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
134
1 in 2,557,868
Census rank
#144,270
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
117
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 117 bearers of the surname Highberg in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 144270th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Highberg, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.8%) and Black (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Highberg
The surname "HIGHBERG" is believed to have originated in the Germanic regions of central Europe, likely in the area that is now modern-day Germany or the Netherlands, during the medieval period around the 11th or 12th century.
One of the earliest recorded instances of this surname can be traced back to a document from the late 13th century, which mentions a family by the name of "Hochberg" residing in the town of Freiburg im Breisgau, in what is now the German state of Baden-Württemberg. The name is thought to be derived from the Old High German words "hoch" meaning "high" and "berg" meaning "mountain" or "hill," suggesting that the family's ancestors may have originally resided in an elevated or mountainous region.
Another early reference to the name can be found in the "Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae Regiae," a collection of historical documents from the Kingdom of Saxony, where a man named "Henricus de Hochberg" is mentioned in a record dated 1312.
In the 15th century, a notable figure with this surname was Johann von Hochberg (1420-1488), a German nobleman and military commander who served as a marshal in the army of the Holy Roman Empire under Emperor Frederick III.
During the 16th century, the name appears to have spread to other parts of Europe, including the Netherlands, where a merchant named Pieter Hoogenberg (1519-1572) is recorded as having lived in the city of Antwerp.
In England, the earliest known reference to the name dates back to the late 17th century, when a family by the name of Highberg is mentioned in parish records from the county of Wiltshire.
Other notable individuals with this surname throughout history include:
1. Karl Friedrich von Hochberg (1672-1738), a Prussian soldier and statesman who served as the Governor of the Principality of Neuchâtel.
2. Maria Anna von Hochberg (1728-1808), a German noblewoman and philanthropist who founded several charitable institutions in her hometown of Raudnitz, Bohemia.
3. Franz Xaver von Hochberg (1806-1873), an Austrian military officer and politician who served as the Minister of War for the Austrian Empire.
4. Sophie von Hochberg (1859-1938), a German aristocrat and writer who published several novels and memoirs about life in the German aristocracy.
5. Maximilian von Hochberg (1892-1965), a German-born American businessman and entrepreneur who founded the Hochberg Machinery Corporation in New York City.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Highberg
Among Census respondents with the surname Highberg, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.8%) and Black (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Highberg 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 Highberg surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.3% · 108
- Hispanic or Latino6.8% · 8
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Highberg
Highberg 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
#130,610
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 130
+1 bearers (+0.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 7,296 places
2020
#144,270
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
-13 bearers (-10.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 13,660 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #123,314 | 129 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #130,610 | 130 | 0.04 | +1 bearers (+0.8%) | Down 7,296 places |
| 2020 | #144,270 | 117 | 0.04 | -13 bearers (-10.0%) | Down 13,660 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 Highberg 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 | #130,610 | #144,270 | -10.5% |
| Count | 130 | 117 | -10.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -2.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Highberg bearers went from 130 to 117 (-10.0% change). The surname moved down 13,660 positions in the national ranking, going from #130,610 to #144,270.
FAQ
Highberg surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Highberg?
Name Census estimates that about 134 living Americans carry the surname Highberg. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,557,868 residents.
How common is Highberg?
Highberg ranks #144,270 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 117 people with the surname Highberg. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (134), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Highberg.
Has Highberg become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Highberg went from 130 recorded bearers to 117. That is a decrease of 13 (-10.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #130,610 to #144,270.
What does the Census say about the background of Highberg?
Among Census respondents with the surname Highberg, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.8%) and Black (0.9%). 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 Highberg in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.3% (108 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Highberg appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.3%), Hispanic (6.8%), Black (0.9%). 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 Highberg (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 Highberg mean?
A surname derived from a topographic location, likely referring to someone living on or near a high hill or mountain ridge. 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 Highberg (0.04 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 Highberg?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.