2000
#126,400
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 125
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Mahrenholz
A German surname derived from a place name meaning "maple wood".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 114 Americans carry the last name Mahrenholz. That puts it at #156,005 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 3,006,617 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mahrenholz 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
114
1 in 3,006,617
Census rank
#156,005
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
99
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 99 bearers of the surname Mahrenholz in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 156005th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mahrenholz, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.0%) and Black (1.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mahrenholz
The surname "MAHRENHOLZ" is of Germanic origin, specifically from the German-speaking regions of Central Europe. It is believed to have originated in the medieval period, around the 13th or 14th century.
The name "MAHRENHOLZ" is a compound word derived from two Old German words: "Mahre" meaning "small horse" or "pony," and "Holz" meaning "forest" or "woods." This suggests that the name may have been initially given to someone who lived in or near a wooded area where small horses or ponies were kept.
There are no known historical references to the name "MAHRENHOLZ" in major ancient manuscripts or records, such as the Domesday Book. However, the earliest recorded instances of the name can be traced back to the 16th century in various German-speaking regions.
One of the earliest recorded bearers of the name was Hans Mahrenholz, born in 1543 in the town of Alsfeld, in the German state of Hesse. Another early example is Johannes Mahrenholz, born in 1581 in the town of Marburg, also in Hesse.
In the 17th century, the name "MAHRENHOLZ" appears in records from various German states, including Brandenburg, Saxony, and Thuringia. One notable bearer from this period was Georg Mahrenholz, a Protestant theologian born in 1632 in the town of Luckau, Brandenburg.
During the 18th and 19th centuries, the name "MAHRENHOLZ" continued to be found in German-speaking regions, with some bearers achieving prominence in various fields. For instance, Friedrich Mahrenholz (1773-1840) was a German mathematician and astronomer who made significant contributions to the study of celestial mechanics.
Another notable figure was Carl Mahrenholz (1785-1849), a German painter and lithographer who was known for his landscapes and portraits. He worked in the cities of Dresden and Leipzig, and his works can be found in various art collections across Germany.
In the 20th century, one of the most prominent bearers of the name was Walther Mahrenholz (1887-1967), a German industrialist and businessman who was involved in the automotive industry. He served as the chairman of the Volkswagen Group from 1937 to 1945.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mahrenholz
Among Census respondents with the surname Mahrenholz, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.0%) and Black (1.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Mahrenholz 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 Mahrenholz surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White97.0% · 96
- Hispanic or Latino2.0% · 2
- Black or African American1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mahrenholz
Mahrenholz 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
#130,610
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 130
+5 bearers (+4.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 4,210 places
2020
#156,005
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 99
-31 bearers (-23.8%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 25,395 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #126,400 | 125 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #130,610 | 130 | 0.04 | +5 bearers (+4.0%) | Down 4,210 places |
| 2020 | #156,005 | 99 | 0.03 | -31 bearers (-23.8%) | Down 25,395 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 Mahrenholz 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 | #130,610 | #156,005 | -19.4% |
| Count | 130 | 99 | -23.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -17.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mahrenholz bearers went from 130 to 99 (-23.8% change). The surname moved down 25,395 positions in the national ranking, going from #130,610 to #156,005.
FAQ
Mahrenholz surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mahrenholz?
Name Census estimates that about 114 living Americans carry the surname Mahrenholz. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 3,006,617 residents.
How common is Mahrenholz?
Mahrenholz ranks #156,005 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 99 people with the surname Mahrenholz. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (114), 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 Mahrenholz.
Has Mahrenholz become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mahrenholz went from 130 recorded bearers to 99. That is a decrease of 31 (-23.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #130,610 to #156,005.
What does the Census say about the background of Mahrenholz?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mahrenholz, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.0%) and Black (1.0%). 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 Mahrenholz in the 2020 Census, accounting for 97.0% (96 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mahrenholz appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (97.0%), Hispanic (2.0%), Black (1.0%). 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 Mahrenholz (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 Mahrenholz mean?
A German surname derived from a place name meaning "maple wood". 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 Mahrenholz (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 people share the surname Mahrenholz?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.