2000
#123,314
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 129
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Jaus
A German surname meaning farmer or peasant.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 130 Americans carry the last name Jaus. That puts it at #147,221 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,636,572 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Jaus 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
130
1 in 2,636,572
Census rank
#147,221
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
113
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 113 bearers of the surname Jaus in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 147221st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Jaus, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.1%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Jaus
The surname JAUS originates from the German language and can be traced back to the 15th century. It is believed to have derived from the German word "Jaus," which means a light meal or snack, particularly one consumed between meals. The name likely referred to an occupation, such as an innkeeper or tavern owner who provided such refreshments to travelers and patrons.
The earliest known records of the surname JAUS appear in various regional archives and parish registers from German-speaking regions, particularly in areas now part of modern-day Germany and Austria. Some of the earliest documented instances include Johannes Jaus, born around 1450 in Nuremberg, and Hans Jaus, a merchant from Vienna, whose name appears in trade records from the late 1400s.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the surname JAUS began to spread across Central Europe, with records indicating bearers of the name in regions such as Saxony, Bavaria, and Bohemia (now part of the Czech Republic). In the 1600s, the surname is also found in historical documents from the Palatinate region, which experienced significant emigration to North America and other parts of the world during this period.
One notable bearer of the JAUS surname was Johann Jaus, a German composer and organist born in 1720 in Kirchheim unter Teck, Württemberg. He is known for his contributions to church music and organ compositions during the Baroque era. Another prominent figure was Karl Jaus, a 19th-century Austrian politician and jurist who served as the Minister of Justice for the Austro-Hungarian Empire from 1867 to 1870.
In the 18th and 19th centuries, the JAUS surname began to appear in various parts of Europe, including France, where it was sometimes spelled as "Jaust" or "Jauss." One notable French bearer of the name was Jean-Baptiste Jaust, a painter and engraver born in 1765 in Paris, known for his landscape and architectural works.
As migration patterns increased during the 19th and early 20th centuries, the JAUS surname spread to other parts of the world, including North America, South America, and Australia, where descendants of German and Austrian immigrants can be found bearing this name.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Jaus
Among Census respondents with the surname Jaus, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.1%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Jaus 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 Jaus surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.1% · 95
- Hispanic or Latino7.1% · 8
- Two or more races4.4% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.7% · 3
- Black or African American1.8% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Jaus
Jaus 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
#136,449
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 123
-6 bearers (-4.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 13,135 places
2020
#147,221
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
-10 bearers (-8.1%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 10,772 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #123,314 | 129 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #136,449 | 123 | 0.04 | -6 bearers (-4.7%) | Down 13,135 places |
| 2020 | #147,221 | 113 | 0.04 | -10 bearers (-8.1%) | Down 10,772 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 Jaus 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 | #136,449 | #147,221 | -7.9% |
| Count | 123 | 113 | -8.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -5.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Jaus bearers went from 123 to 113 (-8.1% change). The surname moved down 10,772 positions in the national ranking, going from #136,449 to #147,221.
FAQ
Jaus surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Jaus?
Name Census estimates that about 130 living Americans carry the surname Jaus. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,636,572 residents.
How common is Jaus?
Jaus ranks #147,221 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 113 people with the surname Jaus. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (130), 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 Jaus.
Has Jaus become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Jaus went from 123 recorded bearers to 113. That is a decrease of 10 (-8.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #136,449 to #147,221.
What does the Census say about the background of Jaus?
Among Census respondents with the surname Jaus, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.1%) and Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Jaus in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.1% (95 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Jaus appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (84.1%), Hispanic (7.1%), Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Jaus (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 Jaus mean?
A German surname meaning farmer or peasant. 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 Jaus (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 Jaus?
See how many people have the last name Jaus on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.