2000
#11,496
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,512
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.93
Rare Last name
Holtzclaw
A German occupational surname referring to a carpenter or woodworker specializing in making claws for wood-splitting.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,840 Americans carry the last name Holtzclaw. That puts it at #12,031 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.83 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 120,688 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Holtzclaw 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
2.8K
1 in 120,688
Census rank
#12,031
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,477 bearers of the surname Holtzclaw in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.83 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12031st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Holtzclaw, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.7%. The next largest groups are Black (8.4%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Holtzclaw
The surname HOLTZCLAW is of German origin, deriving from the Old German words "holtz" meaning "wood" and "klaue" meaning "claw" or "talon." It likely originated as a descriptive surname, referring to someone who worked with wood or perhaps hunted in the forests.
HOLTZCLAW first appeared in historical records in the 16th century in the regions of Bavaria and Saxony in Germany. Early spellings of the name included Holzklau, Holtzklau, and Holzclaw. It is possible that the name was initially a occupational surname for a woodcutter or lumberjack.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the HOLTZCLAW name is found in a 1587 tax record from the town of Nuremberg, where a Johann Holzklau is listed as a resident. Another early reference is in a 1612 church register from the village of Kirchberg, which mentions the baptism of a child named Anna Holtzklau.
In the 17th century, some variations of the name began to appear, such as Holzklauer and Holzklauer. A notable example is Johann Georg Holzklauer, a German composer and organist born in 1663 in Dresden.
As the centuries passed, the HOLTZCLAW name spread beyond Germany. In the 18th century, records show individuals with this surname living in neighboring countries like Austria and Switzerland. One prominent figure was Swiss-born Johann Jakob Holtzclaw (1732-1789), a noted theologian and author.
The 19th century saw the HOLTZCLAW name make its way to the United States, likely through German immigration. One of the earliest American bearers of the name was Friedrich Holtzclaw (1812-1891), who settled in Pennsylvania after arriving from Bavaria in the 1830s.
By the late 1800s, the HOLTZCLAW surname had become well-established in various parts of the United States. Notable individuals from this period include Virginia-born politician and lawyer John Holtzclaw (1853-1923) and Texas rancher and businessman William Holtzclaw (1861-1944).
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Holtzclaw
Among Census respondents with the surname Holtzclaw, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.7%. The next largest groups are Black (8.4%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Holtzclaw 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 Holtzclaw surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White82.7% · 2,048
- Black or African American8.4% · 207
- Two or more races4.4% · 110
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 90
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 15
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 7
Timeline
Historical Census data for Holtzclaw
Holtzclaw 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
#11,968
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,611
+99 bearers (+3.9%)
Per 100,000 0.89
Rank movement Down 472 places
2020
#12,031
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,477
-134 bearers (-5.1%)
Per 100,000 0.83
Rank movement Down 63 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,496 | 2,512 | 0.93 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,968 | 2,611 | 0.89 | +99 bearers (+3.9%) | Down 472 places |
| 2020 | #12,031 | 2,477 | 0.83 | -134 bearers (-5.1%) | Down 63 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 Holtzclaw 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 | #11,968 | #12,031 | -0.5% |
| Count | 2,611 | 2,477 | -5.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.89 | 0.83 | -6.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Holtzclaw bearers went from 2,611 to 2,477 (-5.1% change). The surname moved down 63 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,968 to #12,031.
FAQ
Holtzclaw surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Holtzclaw?
Name Census estimates that about 2,840 living Americans carry the surname Holtzclaw. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 120,688 residents.
How common is Holtzclaw?
Holtzclaw ranks #12,031 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.83 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,477 people with the surname Holtzclaw. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,840), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.83 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.83 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Holtzclaw.
Has Holtzclaw become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Holtzclaw went from 2,611 recorded bearers to 2,477. That is a decrease of 134 (-5.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #11,968 to #12,031.
What does the Census say about the background of Holtzclaw?
Among Census respondents with the surname Holtzclaw, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.7%. The next largest groups are Black (8.4%) and Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Holtzclaw in the 2020 Census, accounting for 82.7% (2,048 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Holtzclaw appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (82.7%), Black (8.4%), Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Holtzclaw (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 Holtzclaw mean?
A German occupational surname referring to a carpenter or woodworker specializing in making claws for wood-splitting. 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 Holtzclaw (0.83 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 Holtzclaw?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.