2000
#100,194
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 167
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.06
Very Rare Last name
Lindorff
A habitational surname originating from a place name containing the German elements "lind" meaning lime tree and "dorf" meaning village.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 170 Americans carry the last name Lindorff. That puts it at #122,574 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.05 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,016,202 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Lindorff 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
170
1 in 2,016,202
Census rank
#122,574
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
148
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 148 bearers of the surname Lindorff in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.05 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 122574th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Lindorff, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.3%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (1.4%) and Black (0.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Lindorff
The surname Lindorff has its origins in Germany, with the earliest records dating back to the 16th century. The name is believed to be derived from the Old German word "lind," which means "lime tree." This suggests that the name may have originated from a place name associated with the presence of lime trees, such as a village or a region.
One of the earliest known references to the name Lindorff can be found in the records of the town of Lindorf, located in the state of Lower Saxony, Germany. The town's name, which was spelled as "Lindorf" in the Middle Ages, likely gave rise to the surname Lindorff. This connection to a specific place name lends credibility to the theory that the surname originated from a geographical location.
In the late 16th century, a man named Hans Lindorff was recorded as a resident of the city of Hannover, which is also located in Lower Saxony. This is one of the earliest documented instances of an individual bearing the surname Lindorff.
Throughout the 17th and 18th centuries, the name Lindorff appeared in various records across various regions of Germany, including Bavaria, Saxony, and Thuringia. One notable individual was Johann Friedrich Lindorff (1678-1742), a German Lutheran theologian and author who served as a pastor in the town of Altenburg, located in the modern-day state of Thuringia.
In the 19th century, the name Lindorff gained prominence with the birth of Karl August Lindorff (1818-1907), a German businessman and industrialist. He founded the Lindorff Group, a successful manufacturing company that produced a wide range of products, including textiles and machinery.
Another notable figure was Ernst Lindorff (1865-1927), a German architect who specialized in the design of public buildings. He was responsible for the construction of several prominent structures in Berlin, including the Reichsbank and the Museum für Völkerkunde (Museum of Ethnology).
As the Lindorff family spread across different regions of Germany and beyond, variations in the spelling of the surname emerged. Some common variations include Lindorf, Lindorfer, and Lindorffer. However, the core elements of the name, derived from the Old German word "lind," have remained consistent throughout its history.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lindorff
Among Census respondents with the surname Lindorff, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.3%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (1.4%) and Black (0.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Lindorff 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 Lindorff surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White97.3% · 144
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.4% · 2
- Black or African American0.7% · 1
- Hispanic or Latino0.7% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Lindorff
Lindorff 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
#106,096
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 168
+1 bearers (+0.6%)
Per 100,000 0.06
Rank movement Down 5,902 places
2020
#122,574
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 148
-20 bearers (-11.9%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Down 16,478 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #100,194 | 167 | 0.06 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #106,096 | 168 | 0.06 | +1 bearers (+0.6%) | Down 5,902 places |
| 2020 | #122,574 | 148 | 0.05 | -20 bearers (-11.9%) | Down 16,478 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 Lindorff 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 | #106,096 | #122,574 | -15.5% |
| Count | 168 | 148 | -11.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.06 | 0.05 | -17.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Lindorff bearers went from 168 to 148 (-11.9% change). The surname moved down 16,478 positions in the national ranking, going from #106,096 to #122,574.
FAQ
Lindorff surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Lindorff?
Name Census estimates that about 170 living Americans carry the surname Lindorff. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,016,202 residents.
How common is Lindorff?
Lindorff ranks #122,574 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.05 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 148 people with the surname Lindorff. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (170), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.05 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.05 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 Lindorff.
Has Lindorff become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Lindorff went from 168 recorded bearers to 148. That is a decrease of 20 (-11.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #106,096 to #122,574.
What does the Census say about the background of Lindorff?
Among Census respondents with the surname Lindorff, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.3%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (1.4%) and Black (0.7%). 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 Lindorff in the 2020 Census, accounting for 97.3% (144 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Lindorff appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (97.3%), Asian/Pacific Islander (1.4%), Black (0.7%). 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 Lindorff (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 Lindorff mean?
A habitational surname originating from a place name containing the German elements "lind" meaning lime tree and "dorf" meaning village. 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 Lindorff (0.05 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 have the surname Lindorff?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.