2000
#2,800
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 11,776
First available Census row
Per 100,000 4.37
Uncommon Last name
Hite
An English occupational surname referring to a person who lived on or near a hill.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 13,011 Americans carry the last name Hite. That puts it at #3,092 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.80 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 26,343 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hite 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 Hite with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
13K
1 in 26,343
Census rank
#3,092
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
11K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 11,346 bearers of the surname Hite in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.80 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3092nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hite, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.6%. The next largest groups are Black (9.0%) and Two or More Races (3.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hite
The surname HITE originated in Germany, where it first appeared around the late 12th century. It is derived from the Old German word "hiet," meaning a guard or watchman. The name was likely given to someone who performed this duty, either as a soldier or a night watchman in a town or village.
Some of the earliest recorded instances of the HITE surname can be found in medieval German records and manuscripts, such as the Codex Diplomaticus Anhaltinus from the 13th century. The name was also mentioned in the Liber Census Daniæ, a Danish census from the 16th century, indicating that the name had spread to other parts of Northern Europe by that time.
One of the earliest known bearers of the HITE surname was Hans Hite, a German soldier who fought in the Thirty Years' War (1618-1648). Another notable figure was Jürgen Hite (1592-1657), a German merchant and explorer who was among the first Europeans to establish trade routes with India and the East Indies.
In the 17th century, several members of the HITE family immigrated to the American colonies, where the name evolved into various spellings such as HIGHT, HYTE, and HITE. One of the earliest recorded HITE settlers was Jost Hite (1652-1720), a German immigrant who established the town of Hite's Fort (now Strasburg) in Virginia.
Other notable individuals with the HITE surname include:
1. Isaac Hite (1758-1836), an American soldier and frontiersman who served in the Revolutionary War.
2. William Hite (1786-1856), an American politician who served as a U.S. Representative from Kentucky.
3. John Hite (1813-1892), a German-American brewer and entrepreneur who founded the Hite Brewery in Louisville, Kentucky.
4. Anna Hite (1858-1925), an American educator and suffragist who fought for women's rights and education reform.
5. William Hite (1878-1944), an American artist and painter known for his landscapes and portraiture.
While the HITE surname has its roots in medieval Germany, it has since spread across the world, with bearers found in various countries and communities.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hite
Among Census respondents with the surname Hite, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.6%. The next largest groups are Black (9.0%) and Two or More Races (3.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Hite 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 Hite surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White83.6% · 9,487
- Black or African American9.0% · 1,018
- Two or more races3.6% · 404
- Hispanic or Latino2.7% · 310
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 78
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 49
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hite
Hite 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
#3,034
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 11,810
+34 bearers (+0.3%)
Per 100,000 4.00
Rank movement Down 234 places
2020
#3,092
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 11,346
-464 bearers (-3.9%)
Per 100,000 3.80
Rank movement Down 58 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,800 | 11,776 | 4.37 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,034 | 11,810 | 4.00 | +34 bearers (+0.3%) | Down 234 places |
| 2020 | #3,092 | 11,346 | 3.80 | -464 bearers (-3.9%) | Down 58 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 Hite 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 | #3,034 | #3,092 | -1.9% |
| Count | 11,810 | 11,346 | -3.9% |
| Per 100K | 4.00 | 3.80 | -5.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hite bearers went from 11,810 to 11,346 (-3.9% change). The surname moved down 58 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,034 to #3,092.
FAQ
Hite surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hite?
Name Census estimates that about 13,011 living Americans carry the surname Hite. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 26,343 residents.
How common is Hite?
Hite ranks #3,092 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.80 per 100,000 residents, which is about 4 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 11,346 people with the surname Hite. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (13,011), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.8 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.80 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 4 of them to have the surname Hite.
Has Hite become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hite went from 11,810 recorded bearers to 11,346. That is a decrease of 464 (-3.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,034 to #3,092.
What does the Census say about the background of Hite?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hite, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.6%. The next largest groups are Black (9.0%) and Two or More Races (3.6%). 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 Hite in the 2020 Census, accounting for 83.6% (9,487 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hite appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (83.6%), Black (9.0%), Two or More Races (3.6%). 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 Hite (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 Hite mean?
An English occupational surname referring to a person who lived on or near a hill. 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 Hite (3.80 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 Americans have the surname Hite?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.