2000
#17,030
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,538
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.57
Rare Last name
Lenhardt
A German surname derived from the words "leng" meaning long and "hart" meaning hard or strong.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,780 Americans carry the last name Lenhardt. That puts it at #17,756 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.52 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 192,559 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Lenhardt 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
1.8K
1 in 192,559
Census rank
#17,756
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,552 bearers of the surname Lenhardt in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.52 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 17756th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Lenhardt, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.3%. The next largest groups are Black (5.0%) and Two or More Races (3.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Lenhardt
The surname Lenhardt is of German origin and can be traced back to the Middle Ages. It is derived from the old German words "leng," meaning long, and "hart," meaning hardy or brave. The name likely referred to a person of tall stature who was known for their courage and resilience.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Lenhardt can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus, a collection of medieval documents from the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg, dating back to the 13th century. The name is also mentioned in the Württembergisches Urkundenbuch, a collection of records from the former state of Württemberg, in the 14th century.
In the 16th century, a notable bearer of the name was Johann Lenhardt, a German Renaissance humanist and scholar who lived from 1490 to 1563. He was renowned for his contributions to the study of classical literature and his translations of ancient Greek and Roman texts.
Another historical figure with the surname Lenhardt was Johann Christoph Lenhardt, a German composer and organist who lived from 1640 to 1701. He is known for his works for the organ and his contributions to the development of the North German organ school.
In the 19th century, the name Lenhardt was associated with the town of Lenhardt in the Swabian region of Germany, which was likely named after an early inhabitant bearing the surname.
One of the most famous bearers of the name in modern times was Wilhelm Lenhardt, a German artist and sculptor who lived from 1875 to 1956. He is celebrated for his monumental public sculptures and his works depicting scenes from German folklore and mythology.
Another notable figure was Karl Lenhardt, a German-American engineer and inventor who lived from 1886 to 1975. He is best known for his contributions to the development of early television technology and his work on the first electronic color television system.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lenhardt
Among Census respondents with the surname Lenhardt, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.3%. The next largest groups are Black (5.0%) and Two or More Races (3.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Lenhardt 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 Lenhardt surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.3% · 1,370
- Black or African American5.0% · 77
- Two or more races3.0% · 47
- Hispanic or Latino2.7% · 42
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 13
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Lenhardt
Lenhardt 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
#15,700
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,858
+320 bearers (+20.8%)
Per 100,000 0.63
Rank movement Up 1,330 places
2020
#17,756
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,552
-306 bearers (-16.5%)
Per 100,000 0.52
Rank movement Down 2,056 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #17,030 | 1,538 | 0.57 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #15,700 | 1,858 | 0.63 | +320 bearers (+20.8%) | Up 1,330 places |
| 2020 | #17,756 | 1,552 | 0.52 | -306 bearers (-16.5%) | Down 2,056 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 Lenhardt 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 | #15,700 | #17,756 | -13.1% |
| Count | 1,858 | 1,552 | -16.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.63 | 0.52 | -17.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Lenhardt bearers went from 1,858 to 1,552 (-16.5% change). The surname moved down 2,056 positions in the national ranking, going from #15,700 to #17,756.
FAQ
Lenhardt surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Lenhardt?
Name Census estimates that about 1,780 living Americans carry the surname Lenhardt. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 192,559 residents.
How common is Lenhardt?
Lenhardt ranks #17,756 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.52 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 1,552 people with the surname Lenhardt. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,780), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.52 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.52 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Lenhardt.
Has Lenhardt become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Lenhardt went from 1,858 recorded bearers to 1,552. That is a decrease of 306 (-16.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #15,700 to #17,756.
What does the Census say about the background of Lenhardt?
Among Census respondents with the surname Lenhardt, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.3%. The next largest groups are Black (5.0%) and Two or More Races (3.0%). 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 Lenhardt in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.3% (1,370 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Lenhardt appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.3%), Black (5.0%), Two or More Races (3.0%). 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 Lenhardt (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 Lenhardt mean?
A German surname derived from the words "leng" meaning long and "hart" meaning hard or strong. 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 Lenhardt (0.52 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 Lenhardt?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.