2000
#6,520
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,798
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.78
Rare Last name
Hostetter
An occupational surname for an innkeeper, derived from the Middle High German word "hostâter" meaning "innkeeper" or "landlord."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,585 Americans carry the last name Hostetter. That puts it at #6,666 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.63 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 61,371 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hostetter 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
5.6K
1 in 61,371
Census rank
#6,666
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,870 bearers of the surname Hostetter in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.63 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6666th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hostetter, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.5%) and Hispanic (2.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hostetter
The surname Hostetter is of German origin, derived from the Middle High German word "hostete," meaning "an inn or hostel keeper." It is believed to have originated in the 14th or 15th century in the German-speaking regions of central Europe.
One of the earliest records of the name can be found in the town of Kirchheimbolanden, in the modern-day German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, where a family by the name of Hostetter is mentioned in a document from the year 1495. The name was also prevalent in other areas of Germany, such as Bavaria and Saxony.
In the 16th century, the Hostetter family gained prominence in the city of Nuremberg, where several members were successful merchants and traders. One notable figure was Hans Hostetter, a prominent merchant and banker who lived from 1515 to 1589.
As the Hostetter family spread across Europe, the name underwent various spellings, including Hostater, Hostater, and Hostädter. Some branches of the family eventually migrated to other parts of Europe and even to the Americas.
In the 18th century, the name Hostetter appeared in the records of the German immigrant community in Pennsylvania, United States. One of the earliest known bearers of the name in America was Johann Hostetter, who arrived in Philadelphia in 1744.
Another notable figure was David Hostetter, a prominent physician and businessman who lived from 1819 to 1888. He founded the Dr. Hostetter's Stomach Bitters company, which became one of the most successful proprietary medicine businesses in the United States during the 19th century.
Other notable individuals with the surname Hostetter include:
1. John Hostetter (1860-1924), an American politician who served as a U.S. Representative from Ohio.
2. Jacob Hostetter (1790-1867), an American Mennonite bishop and writer from Pennsylvania.
3. Ernst Hostetter (1894-1968), a Swiss architect and city planner.
4. Cedric Hostetter (1864-1941), an American lawyer and politician from Illinois.
5. Charles Hostetter (1900-1985), an American baseball player who played for the Philadelphia Athletics in the 1920s.
Over the centuries, the Hostetter surname has maintained its roots in the German-speaking regions of Europe, while also spreading to other parts of the world through migration and cultural exchange.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hostetter
Among Census respondents with the surname Hostetter, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.5%) and Hispanic (2.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Hostetter 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 Hostetter surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.9% · 4,575
- Two or more races2.5% · 124
- Hispanic or Latino2.2% · 107
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 33
- Black or African American0.4% · 21
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hostetter
Hostetter 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
#6,799
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,960
+162 bearers (+3.4%)
Per 100,000 1.68
Rank movement Down 279 places
2020
#6,666
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,870
-90 bearers (-1.8%)
Per 100,000 1.63
Rank movement Up 133 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,520 | 4,798 | 1.78 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,799 | 4,960 | 1.68 | +162 bearers (+3.4%) | Down 279 places |
| 2020 | #6,666 | 4,870 | 1.63 | -90 bearers (-1.8%) | Up 133 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 Hostetter 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 | #6,799 | #6,666 | 2.0% |
| Count | 4,960 | 4,870 | -1.8% |
| Per 100K | 1.68 | 1.63 | -3.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hostetter bearers went from 4,960 to 4,870 (-1.8% change). The surname moved up 133 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,799 to #6,666.
FAQ
Hostetter surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hostetter?
Name Census estimates that about 5,585 living Americans carry the surname Hostetter. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 61,371 residents.
How common is Hostetter?
Hostetter ranks #6,666 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.63 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 4,870 people with the surname Hostetter. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,585), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.63 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.63 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Hostetter.
Has Hostetter become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hostetter went from 4,960 recorded bearers to 4,870. That is a decrease of 90 (-1.8%). In the national ranking it rose from #6,799 to #6,666.
What does the Census say about the background of Hostetter?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hostetter, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.5%) 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 Hostetter in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.9% (4,575 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hostetter appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.9%), Two or More Races (2.5%), 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 Hostetter (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 Hostetter mean?
An occupational surname for an innkeeper, derived from the Middle High German word "hostâter" meaning "innkeeper" or "landlord." 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 Hostetter (1.63 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 Hostetter?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.