Find out how popular the last name Lichtenberger is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Lichtenberger.

Lichtenberger, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Lichtenberger surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Lichtenberger in America

Lichtenberger is the 20274th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Lichtenberger surname appeared 1,312 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Lichtenberger.

We can also compare 2010 data for Lichtenberger to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Lichtenberger

The surname Lichtenberger originated in Germany during the Middle Ages. It is a locational name, derived from the German words "licht" meaning "light" and "berg" meaning "mountain" or "hill." This suggests that the name likely referred to someone who lived near a bright or illuminated hill or mountain.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Lichtenberger appears in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae Regiae, a collection of historical documents from Saxony, Germany. In a document dated 1292, a man named Conradus Lichtenberger is mentioned as a witness to a land transaction.

During the 14th century, the Lichtenberger family was prominent in the city of Nuremberg, Bavaria. In 1362, a man named Hans Lichtenberger is recorded as a member of the city council. Around the same time, another Lichtenberger, Johannes, was a renowned scholar and mathematician who taught at the University of Vienna.

In the 15th century, Johann Lichtenberger (c. 1440-1508) was a renowned astrologer and professor at the University of Ingolstadt. He published several works on astrology and prophecy, including the famous "Pronosticatio" in 1488, which predicted the coming of a great flood and other calamities.

Another notable Lichtenberger was Johann Christoph Lichtenberg (1642-1703), a German composer and organist who served as the Kapellmeister at the court of Ansbach in Bavaria.

In the 18th century, Georg Christoph Lichtenberg (1742-1799) was a famous German scientist, satirist, and Enlightenment philosopher. He made significant contributions to the study of electricity and was also known for his witty aphorisms and critiques of society.

Throughout history, variations of the name Lichtenberger have included Lichtenberg, Lichtenberger, Liechtenberger, and Lichtenberger. The name has also been associated with various places in Germany, such as Lichtenberg in Saxony, Lichtenberg in Hesse, and Lichtenberg in Bavaria.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Lichtenberger

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Lichtenberger.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Lichtenberger was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Lichtenberger has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Lichtenberger was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Lichtenberger, please contact us.

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