2010
#157,234
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 103
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.03
Very Rare Last name
Houch
A variant spelling of the German surname "Hoch" meaning "high" or "tall".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 133 Americans carry the last name Houch. That puts it at #145,028 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,577,100 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Houch 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
133
1 in 2,577,100
Census rank
#145,028
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
116
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 116 bearers of the surname Houch in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 145028th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Houch, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (10.3%) and Hispanic (4.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Houch
The surname HOUCH is believed to have originated in Germany during the Middle Ages. It is thought to be derived from the Old German word "houk," which translates to "hook" or "crook," suggesting that the name may have been an occupational surname given to someone who worked as a maker or seller of hooks.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name HOUCH can be found in the Rottenburg Codex, a manuscript dating back to the 13th century, which mentions a certain "Johannes Houch" as a resident of the town of Rottenburg am Neckar.
In the 14th century, the HOUCH surname appears in various records from the Rhineland region of Germany, such as the Cologne Burgher Roll of 1381, which lists a "Henricus Houch" among the citizens of the city.
As the name spread across Europe, it underwent various spelling variations, including Houk, Houck, and Houcke. Several notable individuals bearing this surname have been recorded throughout history, including:
1. Johann Houch (1550-1618), a German composer and organist who served as the Kapellmeister at the court of the Elector of Saxony.
2. Peter Houch (1616-1679), a Dutch painter known for his portraits and genre scenes.
3. Anna Houch (1682-1738), a German herbalist and midwife who published one of the earliest books on traditional herbal remedies in the region.
4. Wilhelm Houch (1798-1868), a Prussian military officer who fought in the Napoleonic Wars and later served as the governor of the Prussian province of Pomerania.
5. Gustav Houch (1867-1942), a German architect who designed several notable buildings in Berlin and other cities during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Additionally, the surname HOUCH has been associated with various place names across Germany and neighboring regions, such as the village of Houcherath in the Eifel region of Germany, as well as the town of Houchin in northern France.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Houch
Among Census respondents with the surname Houch, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (10.3%) and Hispanic (4.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Houch 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 Houch surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White80.2% · 93
- Two or more races10.3% · 12
- Hispanic or Latino4.3% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.6% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.6% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Houch
Houch appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#145,028
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 116
+13 bearers (+12.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 12,206 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #157,234 | 103 | 0.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #145,028 | 116 | 0.04 | +13 bearers (+12.6%) | Up 12,206 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 Houch 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 | #157,234 | #145,028 | 7.8% |
| Count | 103 | 116 | 12.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.04 | 29.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Houch bearers went from 103 to 116 (+12.6% change). The surname moved up 12,206 positions in the national ranking, going from #157,234 to #145,028.
FAQ
Houch surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Houch?
Name Census estimates that about 133 living Americans carry the surname Houch. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,577,100 residents.
How common is Houch?
Houch ranks #145,028 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 116 people with the surname Houch. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (133), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Houch.
Has Houch become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Houch went from 103 recorded bearers to 116. That is an increase of 13 (+12.6%). In the national ranking it rose from #157,234 to #145,028.
What does the Census say about the background of Houch?
Among Census respondents with the surname Houch, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (10.3%) and Hispanic (4.3%). 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 Houch in the 2020 Census, accounting for 80.2% (93 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Houch appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (80.2%), Two or More Races (10.3%), Hispanic (4.3%). 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 Houch (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 Houch mean?
A variant spelling of the German surname "Hoch" meaning "high" or "tall". 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 Houch (0.04 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 common is the surname Houch?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people are called Houch at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.