2000
#140,756
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 109
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Maitner
A Polish habitational name from various places named Maitner.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 136 Americans carry the last name Maitner. That puts it at #142,788 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,520,252 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Maitner 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
136
1 in 2,520,252
Census rank
#142,788
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
119
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 119 bearers of the surname Maitner in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 142788th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Maitner, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.7%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Maitner
The surname MAITNER is of German origin, emerging in the late 16th century. It is believed to have originated from the German word "meister," which means "master" or "skilled craftsman." This suggests that the name was initially an occupational surname, given to individuals who were highly skilled in a particular trade or craft.
The earliest recorded instances of the MAITNER surname date back to the late 1500s in various regions of Germany, such as Bavaria and Saxony. It is worth noting that the name was often spelled differently in those times, with variations like "Meitner," "Maitner," and "Meitener" appearing in historical records.
One of the earliest known individuals with this surname was Hans Maitner, a skilled blacksmith who lived in the town of Nürnberg, Bavaria, in the late 16th century. His name is mentioned in several local documents and records from that period.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the MAITNER surname began to spread across other parts of Europe, particularly in areas with significant German populations. Notable examples include Johann Maitner (1620-1698), a renowned clockmaker from Dresden, and Friedrich Maitner (1740-1815), a respected scholar and linguist from Leipzig.
In the 19th century, the MAITNER name gained prominence with the birth of Lise Maitner (1878-1956), a pioneering Austrian physicist who made significant contributions to the study of radioactivity and nuclear physics. She worked alongside renowned scientists such as Otto Hahn and Fritz Strassmann, and her research played a crucial role in the discovery of nuclear fission.
Another notable figure with the MAITNER surname was Karl Maitner (1892-1976), a German-born architect who immigrated to the United States in the early 20th century. He is known for his innovative residential and commercial designs, particularly in the Art Deco style, which can be found in various cities across the country.
The MAITNER surname has also been associated with other accomplished individuals, such as Hans Maitner (1909-1986), a respected German-American physicist and engineer who worked on the Manhattan Project during World War II, and Erich Maitner (1920-2001), a prolific Austrian writer and journalist known for his novels and literary critiques.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Maitner
Among Census respondents with the surname Maitner, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.7%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Maitner 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 Maitner surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.1% · 112
- Hispanic or Latino1.7% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.7% · 2
- Black or African American0.8% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 1
- Two or more races0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Maitner
Maitner 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
#139,228
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 120
+11 bearers (+10.1%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 1,528 places
2020
#142,788
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 119
-1 bearers (-0.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 3,560 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #140,756 | 109 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #139,228 | 120 | 0.04 | +11 bearers (+10.1%) | Up 1,528 places |
| 2020 | #142,788 | 119 | 0.04 | -1 bearers (-0.8%) | Down 3,560 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 Maitner 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 | #139,228 | #142,788 | -2.6% |
| Count | 120 | 119 | -0.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -0.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Maitner bearers went from 120 to 119 (-0.8% change). The surname moved down 3,560 positions in the national ranking, going from #139,228 to #142,788.
FAQ
Maitner surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Maitner?
Name Census estimates that about 136 living Americans carry the surname Maitner. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,520,252 residents.
How common is Maitner?
Maitner ranks #142,788 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 119 people with the surname Maitner. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (136), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Maitner.
Has Maitner become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Maitner went from 120 recorded bearers to 119. That is a decrease of 1 (-0.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #139,228 to #142,788.
What does the Census say about the background of Maitner?
Among Census respondents with the surname Maitner, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.7%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.7%). 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 Maitner in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.1% (112 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Maitner appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.1%), Hispanic (1.7%), American Indian/Alaska Native (1.7%). 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 Maitner (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 Maitner mean?
A Polish habitational name from various places named Maitner. 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 Maitner (0.04 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 Maitner?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.