2010
#140,157
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 119
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Lonstein
A surname originating from a Germanic place name relating to a long or tall stone.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 115 Americans carry the last name Lonstein. That puts it at #155,682 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,980,473 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Lonstein 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
115
1 in 2,980,473
Census rank
#155,682
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
100
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 100 bearers of the surname Lonstein in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 155682nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Lonstein, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (9.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Lonstein
The surname Lonstein is believed to have originated in Germany during the Middle Ages. It is thought to be derived from the German words "lohn" meaning "wage" or "payment" and "stein" meaning "stone." This suggests that the name may have been given to someone who worked with stone or quarry materials for a living.
Some of the earliest recorded instances of the name Lonstein can be found in medieval German records and documents from the 13th and 14th centuries. These early spellings of the name include variations such as Lonsteine, Lohnstein, and Lonstain.
While the name does not appear in landmark historical records like the Domesday Book, there are references to individuals with the surname Lonstein in various German chronicles and regional archives from the late medieval period. For example, a merchant named Hans Lonstein is mentioned in a 1487 trade register from the city of Nuremberg.
One of the earliest known bearers of the Lonstein name was Friedrich Lonstein, a stonemason who lived in the town of Rothenburg ob der Tauber in the late 15th century. He is credited with constructing several notable buildings and structures that still stand in the town today.
In the 16th century, a notable figure named Michael Lonstein was a prominent Lutheran theologian and author who wrote extensively on the Protestant Reformation. He was born in 1523 in the city of Wittenberg and died in 1597.
Another historical figure with the surname Lonstein was Johann Lonstein, a German military officer who fought in the Thirty Years' War during the 17th century. He served as a captain in the army of the Holy Roman Empire and is mentioned in several accounts of battles and campaigns from that conflict.
In the 18th century, a man named Heinrich Lonstein was a renowned clockmaker and watchmaker based in the city of Augsburg. His intricate timepieces were highly sought after by wealthy patrons across Europe.
During the 19th century, a notable bearer of the Lonstein name was Karl Lonstein, a German explorer and naturalist who traveled extensively in Africa and made significant contributions to the field of botany. He was born in 1822 and died in 1887.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lonstein
Among Census respondents with the surname Lonstein, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (9.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Lonstein 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 Lonstein surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.0% · 91
- Two or more races9.0% · 9
Timeline
Historical Census data for Lonstein
Lonstein 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
#155,682
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 100
-19 bearers (-16.0%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 15,525 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #140,157 | 119 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #155,682 | 100 | 0.03 | -19 bearers (-16.0%) | Down 15,525 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 Lonstein 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 | #140,157 | #155,682 | -11.1% |
| Count | 119 | 100 | -16.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -16.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Lonstein bearers went from 119 to 100 (-16.0% change). The surname moved down 15,525 positions in the national ranking, going from #140,157 to #155,682.
FAQ
Lonstein surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Lonstein?
Name Census estimates that about 115 living Americans carry the surname Lonstein. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,980,473 residents.
How common is Lonstein?
Lonstein ranks #155,682 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 100 people with the surname Lonstein. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (115), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Lonstein.
Has Lonstein become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Lonstein went from 119 recorded bearers to 100. That is a decrease of 19 (-16.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #140,157 to #155,682.
What does the Census say about the background of Lonstein?
Among Census respondents with the surname Lonstein, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (9.0%). 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 Lonstein in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.0% (91 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Lonstein appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.0%), Two or More Races (9.0%). 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 Lonstein (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 Lonstein mean?
A surname originating from a Germanic place name relating to a long or tall stone. 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 Lonstein (0.03 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 Lonstein?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.