2010
#131,379
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 129
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Hovestadt
Originally a place name referring to a fortified farmstead or estate.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 139 Americans carry the last name Hovestadt. That puts it at #141,309 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,465,859 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hovestadt 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
139
1 in 2,465,859
Census rank
#141,309
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
121
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 121 bearers of the surname Hovestadt in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 141309th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hovestadt, the largest self-reported group is White at 99.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (0.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hovestadt
The surname Hovestadt is of German origin, derived from the term "Hof" which means "court" or "farm" and "Stadt" meaning "town" or "city." This suggests the name originated among individuals who lived or worked on a farm or estate near a town or city. The name can be traced back to the 16th century in northern Germany, particularly in the regions of North Rhine-Westphalia and Lower Saxony.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Hovestadt appears in a registry of births, marriages, and deaths from the town of Paderborn, in North Rhine-Westphalia, dated 1582. This entry records the birth of Johann Hovestadt, son of a farmer named Heinrich Hovestadt. Other early records from the 17th and 18th centuries show the name spelled in various ways, such as Hofestadt, Hofestatt, and Hovenstett, reflecting regional variations in dialect and spelling conventions.
In the 18th century, the name Hovestadt appears in several historical documents from the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg, a region now part of Lower Saxony. One notable figure was Johann Wilhelm Hovestadt, a prominent scholar and philosopher who lived from 1695 to 1772. He served as a professor of philosophy and mathematics at the University of Helmstedt and authored several influential works on logic and metaphysics.
Another individual of note was Friedrich Wilhelm Hovestadt, born in 1767 in Hanover, who served as a military officer in the Prussian army during the Napoleonic Wars. He rose to the rank of Major General and was awarded the prestigious Pour le Mérite order for his bravery and leadership in the Battle of Leipzig in 1813.
In the 19th century, the Hovestadt name can be found in various parts of Germany, as well as in areas with significant German immigration, such as the United States and Canada. One notable figure was Carl Hovestadt, born in 1818 in Münster, who became a successful businessman and industrialist in the city of Essen. He founded the Hovestadt & Co. ironworks, which played a significant role in the industrialization of the Ruhr Valley.
Another individual of note was Wilhelm Hovestadt, a German-American architect who lived from 1867 to 1938. He was born in Wesel, Germany, and later immigrated to the United States, where he designed several notable buildings in the Chicago area, including the St. Gertrude Catholic Church and the Elks National Memorial Building.
Throughout its history, the surname Hovestadt has been associated with individuals from various walks of life, including farmers, scholars, military officers, industrialists, and architects. While the name may have originated in specific regions of northern Germany, it has since spread to other parts of the world, reflecting the migration patterns and cultural influence of German-speaking communities.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hovestadt
Among Census respondents with the surname Hovestadt, the largest self-reported group is White at 99.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (0.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Hovestadt 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 Hovestadt surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White99.2% · 120
- Hispanic or Latino0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hovestadt
Hovestadt 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
#141,309
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 121
-8 bearers (-6.2%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 9,930 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #131,379 | 129 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #141,309 | 121 | 0.04 | -8 bearers (-6.2%) | Down 9,930 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 Hovestadt 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 | #131,379 | #141,309 | -7.6% |
| Count | 129 | 121 | -6.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | 1.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hovestadt bearers went from 129 to 121 (-6.2% change). The surname moved down 9,930 positions in the national ranking, going from #131,379 to #141,309.
FAQ
Hovestadt surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hovestadt?
Name Census estimates that about 139 living Americans carry the surname Hovestadt. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,465,859 residents.
How common is Hovestadt?
Hovestadt ranks #141,309 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 121 people with the surname Hovestadt. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (139), 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 Hovestadt.
Has Hovestadt become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hovestadt went from 129 recorded bearers to 121. That is a decrease of 8 (-6.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #131,379 to #141,309.
What does the Census say about the background of Hovestadt?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hovestadt, the largest self-reported group is White at 99.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (0.8%). 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 Hovestadt in the 2020 Census, accounting for 99.2% (120 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hovestadt appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (99.2%), Hispanic (0.8%). 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 Hovestadt (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 Hovestadt mean?
Originally a place name referring to a fortified farmstead or estate. 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 Hovestadt (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 many people share the surname Hovestadt?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.