2000
#3,975
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,208
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.04
Uncommon Last name
Horst
A German toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "thicket" or "wooded area."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 11,134 Americans carry the last name Horst. That puts it at #3,580 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.25 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 30,784 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Horst 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 Horst with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
11K
1 in 30,784
Census rank
#3,580
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
9.7K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 9,709 bearers of the surname Horst in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.25 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3580th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Horst, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.0%) and Two or More Races (1.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Horst
The surname Horst originated in Germany and is derived from the Old German words "hurst" or "horst," meaning a small wooded hill or a thicket of trees. It is believed to have been used as a topographic name for someone who lived near or on a small wooded hill or a thicket.
The earliest known record of the surname Horst dates back to the 13th century, where it appeared in various medieval records and manuscripts from regions such as Saxony, Westphalia, and the Rhineland. Some of the earliest known bearers of the name include Henricus de Horst, who was mentioned in records from Cologne in 1275, and Conradus Horst, who was recorded in the town of Quedlinburg in 1292.
Over time, the surname Horst also became associated with various place names, such as Horst in the Netherlands, Horst in Saxony-Anhalt, and Horst in North Rhine-Westphalia, among others. The name was also found in various spellings, including Horste, Horsten, and Horster.
Several notable individuals throughout history have borne the surname Horst. One of the earliest recorded was Johann Horst (c. 1370-1428), a German theologian and philosopher who served as the rector of the University of Heidelberg. Another prominent bearer of the name was Pieter Horst (1516-1567), a Dutch painter and engraver who was known for his religious and mythological works.
In the 19th century, the name gained further prominence with individuals such as Jacobus Marinus van der Horst (1835-1904), a Dutch politician and Prime Minister of the Netherlands from 1891 to 1894, and Gregor Ferdinand Horst (1805-1876), a German jurist and politician who served as the Minister of Justice for Prussia.
Another notable figure was Herman Horst (1886-1967), a Dutch-American architect who designed several prominent buildings in New York City, including the Raleigh Hotel and the Knickerbocker Hotel. Additionally, Janny ter Horst (1911-1943) was a Dutch resistance fighter during World War II who was executed by the Nazi regime for her involvement in the Dutch resistance movement.
These are just a few examples of individuals who have borne the surname Horst throughout history, highlighting its rich heritage and diverse geographic origins.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Horst
Among Census respondents with the surname Horst, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.0%) and Two or More Races (1.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Horst 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 Horst surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White95.0% · 9,228
- Hispanic or Latino2.0% · 197
- Two or more races1.7% · 161
- Black or African American0.6% · 58
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 53
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 12
Timeline
Historical Census data for Horst
Horst 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
#3,831
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,245
+1,037 bearers (+12.6%)
Per 100,000 3.13
Rank movement Up 144 places
2020
#3,580
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,709
+464 bearers (+5.0%)
Per 100,000 3.25
Rank movement Up 251 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,975 | 8,208 | 3.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,831 | 9,245 | 3.13 | +1,037 bearers (+12.6%) | Up 144 places |
| 2020 | #3,580 | 9,709 | 3.25 | +464 bearers (+5.0%) | Up 251 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 Horst 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 | #3,831 | #3,580 | 6.6% |
| Count | 9,245 | 9,709 | 5.0% |
| Per 100K | 3.13 | 3.25 | 3.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Horst bearers went from 9,245 to 9,709 (+5.0% change). The surname moved up 251 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,831 to #3,580.
FAQ
Horst surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Horst?
Name Census estimates that about 11,134 living Americans carry the surname Horst. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 30,784 residents.
How common is Horst?
Horst ranks #3,580 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.25 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 9,709 people with the surname Horst. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (11,134), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.25 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.25 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Horst.
Has Horst become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Horst went from 9,245 recorded bearers to 9,709. That is an increase of 464 (+5.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #3,831 to #3,580.
What does the Census say about the background of Horst?
Among Census respondents with the surname Horst, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.0%) and Two or More Races (1.7%). 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 Horst in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.0% (9,228 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Horst appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (95.0%), Hispanic (2.0%), Two or More Races (1.7%). 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 Horst (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 Horst mean?
A German toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "thicket" or "wooded area." 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 Horst (3.25 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 Horst?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.