2000
#9,205
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,259
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.21
Rare Last name
Hornberger
A German occupational surname referring to a horn maker or horn blower.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,364 Americans carry the last name Hornberger. That puts it at #10,446 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.98 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 101,889 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hornberger 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
3.4K
1 in 101,889
Census rank
#10,446
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,934 bearers of the surname Hornberger in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.98 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10446th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hornberger, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.7%) and Hispanic (2.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hornberger
The surname Hornberger originated in Germany, likely in the early medieval period. It is derived from the German words "Horn" meaning horn and "Berg" meaning mountain or hill, suggesting that the name may have referred to someone who lived near a horn-shaped hill or mountain.
The earliest recorded instances of the name Hornberger can be traced back to the 13th century in various German regions. It is believed that the name was initially associated with specific locations or place names that incorporated the words "Horn" and "Berg," such as Hornberg or Hornbergen.
In the 14th century, the Hornberger name appeared in several historical records, including the Codex Diplomaticus Brandenburgensis, which contains a mention of a Henricus Hornberger in 1348. Additionally, the name was found in the Württembergisches Urkundenbuch, a collection of documents from the region of Württemberg, dating back to the late 13th and early 14th centuries.
Notable individuals with the surname Hornberger throughout history include:
1. Johannes Hornberger (c. 1500-1572), a German humanist and educator from Nuremberg, known for his contributions to the reformation of education.
2. Georg Hornberger (1630-1696), a German composer and organist active in the late 17th century, known for his contributions to the development of church music.
3. Johann Andreas Hornberger (1737-1812), a German jurist and legal scholar who served as a professor of law at the University of Göttingen.
4. Wilhelm Hornberger (1834-1899), a German politician and member of the Reichstag (Imperial Diet) in the late 19th century.
5. Erich Hornberger (1905-1960), a German fighter pilot during World War II, who was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross for his service in the Luftwaffe.
While the Hornberger name has its origins in Germany, it has since spread to other parts of the world through migration and can be found in various countries today.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hornberger
Among Census respondents with the surname Hornberger, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.7%) and Hispanic (2.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Hornberger 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 Hornberger surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.0% · 2,728
- Two or more races2.7% · 78
- Hispanic or Latino2.2% · 65
- Black or African American1.2% · 35
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 18
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hornberger
Hornberger 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
#9,636
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,368
+109 bearers (+3.3%)
Per 100,000 1.14
Rank movement Down 431 places
2020
#10,446
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,934
-434 bearers (-12.9%)
Per 100,000 0.98
Rank movement Down 810 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,205 | 3,259 | 1.21 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #9,636 | 3,368 | 1.14 | +109 bearers (+3.3%) | Down 431 places |
| 2020 | #10,446 | 2,934 | 0.98 | -434 bearers (-12.9%) | Down 810 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 Hornberger 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 | #9,636 | #10,446 | -8.4% |
| Count | 3,368 | 2,934 | -12.9% |
| Per 100K | 1.14 | 0.98 | -13.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hornberger bearers went from 3,368 to 2,934 (-12.9% change). The surname moved down 810 positions in the national ranking, going from #9,636 to #10,446.
FAQ
Hornberger surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hornberger?
Name Census estimates that about 3,364 living Americans carry the surname Hornberger. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 101,889 residents.
How common is Hornberger?
Hornberger ranks #10,446 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.98 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 2,934 people with the surname Hornberger. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,364), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.98 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.98 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 Hornberger.
Has Hornberger become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hornberger went from 3,368 recorded bearers to 2,934. That is a decrease of 434 (-12.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #9,636 to #10,446.
What does the Census say about the background of Hornberger?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hornberger, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.7%) and Hispanic (2.2%). 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 Hornberger in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.0% (2,728 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hornberger appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.0%), Two or More Races (2.7%), Hispanic (2.2%). 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 Hornberger (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 Hornberger mean?
A German occupational surname referring to a horn maker or horn blower. 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 Hornberger (0.98 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 Hornberger?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.