2010
#160,975
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 100
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.03
Very Rare Last name
Johnmeyer
A surname of German origin literally meaning "son of the mayor" or "son of the official".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 120 Americans carry the last name Johnmeyer. That puts it at #152,989 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,856,286 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Johnmeyer 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
120
1 in 2,856,286
Census rank
#152,989
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
105
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 105 bearers of the surname Johnmeyer in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 152989th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Johnmeyer, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.8%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Johnmeyer
The surname JOHNMEYER is of German origin, originating in the regions of Bavaria and Franconia during the late Middle Ages. It is derived from the German words "Johann" and "Meier," which together translates to "John the landowner" or "John the farmer."
In the 14th century, the name JOHNMEYER first appeared in official records and documents, particularly in the regions of Nuremberg and Rothenburg ob der Tauber. These early records often featured variations in spelling, such as "Johanmeier" or "Johannmeyer."
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name JOHNMEYER can be found in a 1427 manuscript from the Rothenburg ob der Tauber archives, which mentions a "Hans Johanmeyer" as a landowner in the nearby village of Gebsattel.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the JOHNMEYER family spread across various parts of southern Germany, with some members establishing themselves as prosperous farmers and landowners in the regions of Swabia and Saxony.
Notable individuals bearing the surname JOHNMEYER include Johann Christoph Johnmeyer (1686-1758), a renowned clockmaker from Nuremberg, whose intricate timepieces were highly sought after by European nobility. Another prominent figure was Friedrich Wilhelm Johnmeyer (1802-1879), a German philosopher and professor at the University of Leipzig.
In the 19th century, several members of the JOHNMEYER family immigrated to the United States, settling in communities such as Cincinnati, Ohio, and Milwaukee, Wisconsin. One such immigrant was Carl Johnmeyer (1824-1901), who established a successful brewery in Cincinnati and became a prominent figure in the city's German-American community.
Other notable individuals with the surname JOHNMEYER include Hans Johnmeyer (1901-1985), a German-American artist and sculptor known for his works in bronze and stone, and Gertrude Johnmeyer (1917-2003), an acclaimed American botanist and author of several books on the flora of the Appalachian region.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Johnmeyer
Among Census respondents with the surname Johnmeyer, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.8%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Johnmeyer 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 Johnmeyer surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.3% · 99
- Two or more races3.8% · 4
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.9% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Johnmeyer
Johnmeyer 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
#152,989
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 105
+5 bearers (+5.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 7,986 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #160,975 | 100 | 0.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #152,989 | 105 | 0.04 | +5 bearers (+5.0%) | Up 7,986 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 Johnmeyer 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 | #160,975 | #152,989 | 5.0% |
| Count | 100 | 105 | 5.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.04 | 17.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Johnmeyer bearers went from 100 to 105 (+5.0% change). The surname moved up 7,986 positions in the national ranking, going from #160,975 to #152,989.
FAQ
Johnmeyer surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Johnmeyer?
Name Census estimates that about 120 living Americans carry the surname Johnmeyer. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,856,286 residents.
How common is Johnmeyer?
Johnmeyer ranks #152,989 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 105 people with the surname Johnmeyer. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (120), 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 Johnmeyer.
Has Johnmeyer become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Johnmeyer went from 100 recorded bearers to 105. That is an increase of 5 (+5.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #160,975 to #152,989.
What does the Census say about the background of Johnmeyer?
Among Census respondents with the surname Johnmeyer, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.8%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.9%). 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 Johnmeyer in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.3% (99 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Johnmeyer appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.3%), Two or More Races (3.8%), American Indian/Alaska Native (1.9%). 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 Johnmeyer (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 Johnmeyer mean?
A surname of German origin literally meaning "son of the mayor" or "son of the official". 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 Johnmeyer (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 Johnmeyer?
Want to know how many people have the surname Johnmeyer? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.