2000
#127,948
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 123
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Holsenback
A locational surname denoting someone from a place named Holsenback.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 115 Americans carry the last name Holsenback. That puts it at #155,682 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,980,473 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Holsenback 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
115
1 in 2,980,473
Census rank
#155,682
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
100
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 100 bearers of the surname Holsenback in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 155682nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Holsenback, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.0%. The next largest groups are Black (4.0%) and Two or More Races (3.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Holsenback
The surname Holsenback has its origins in Germany, with records dating back to the 16th century. It is believed to be derived from the German words "Hol" meaning "hollow" and "sen" meaning "son", possibly referring to a son or descendant of someone who lived in a valley or hollow area. Alternatively, it may have been a locational name, referring to a specific place called Holsenbach or a similar spelling.
The earliest known record of the name Holsenback appears in a census record from the town of Oberholstern, located in the region of Hesse, Germany, in the year 1557. This document lists a family with the surname Holsenbacher, which is likely an earlier spelling variation of the name.
In the 17th century, the name Holsenback can be found in various church records and land registries across central and southern Germany. One notable example is Johann Holsenback, a farmer born in 1624 in the village of Wiesbaden, who is mentioned in a land dispute document from 1678.
As the centuries progressed, the name Holsenback began to spread beyond Germany, with some families emigrating to other parts of Europe and eventually to the Americas. In the late 18th century, a man named Friedrich Holsenback, born in 1767 in the town of Mainz, is recorded as having moved to the Netherlands, where he worked as a merchant.
Another notable individual with the surname Holsenback was Heinrich Holsenback, a German-American author and journalist born in 1832 in the city of Frankfurt. He immigrated to the United States in the 1850s and worked for several German-language newspapers in Pennsylvania and New York.
In the 20th century, one of the most prominent figures with the Holsenback surname was Johanna Holsenback, a German artist and sculptor born in 1905 in Berlin. Her work was exhibited in various galleries across Europe and is now part of several museum collections.
While the surname Holsenback is not among the most common in Germany or other parts of the world, it has a long and interesting history that can be traced back to the 16th century and its origins in the German language and geography.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Holsenback
Among Census respondents with the surname Holsenback, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.0%. The next largest groups are Black (4.0%) and Two or More Races (3.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Holsenback 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 Holsenback surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.0% · 91
- Black or African American4.0% · 4
- Two or more races3.0% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.0% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Holsenback
Holsenback 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
#131,379
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 129
+6 bearers (+4.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 3,431 places
2020
#155,682
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 100
-29 bearers (-22.5%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 24,303 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #127,948 | 123 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #131,379 | 129 | 0.04 | +6 bearers (+4.9%) | Down 3,431 places |
| 2020 | #155,682 | 100 | 0.03 | -29 bearers (-22.5%) | Down 24,303 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 Holsenback 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 | #131,379 | #155,682 | -18.5% |
| Count | 129 | 100 | -22.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -16.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Holsenback bearers went from 129 to 100 (-22.5% change). The surname moved down 24,303 positions in the national ranking, going from #131,379 to #155,682.
FAQ
Holsenback surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Holsenback?
Name Census estimates that about 115 living Americans carry the surname Holsenback. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,980,473 residents.
How common is Holsenback?
Holsenback ranks #155,682 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 100 people with the surname Holsenback. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (115), 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 Holsenback.
Has Holsenback become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Holsenback went from 129 recorded bearers to 100. That is a decrease of 29 (-22.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #131,379 to #155,682.
What does the Census say about the background of Holsenback?
Among Census respondents with the surname Holsenback, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.0%. The next largest groups are Black (4.0%) and Two or More Races (3.0%). 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 Holsenback in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.0% (91 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Holsenback appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.0%), Black (4.0%), Two or More Races (3.0%). 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 Holsenback (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 Holsenback mean?
A locational surname denoting someone from a place named Holsenback. 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 Holsenback (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 have the surname Holsenback?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.