2000
#131,366
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 119
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Merbach
A surname derived from a place name in Germany.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 122 Americans carry the last name Merbach. That puts it at #152,339 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,809,462 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Merbach 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
122
1 in 2,809,462
Census rank
#152,339
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
106
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 106 bearers of the surname Merbach in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 152339th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Merbach, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.9%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Merbach
The surname Merbach is believed to have originated in Germany, likely during the Middle Ages. It is thought to be derived from the Old High German words "mer" meaning "lake" or "sea" and "bach" meaning "stream" or "brook." This suggests that the name may have been initially given to someone who lived near a body of water or a stream.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Merbach can be found in the town of Merbach in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. This town's name, which dates back to the 13th century, is likely the source of the surname. It is possible that the name was initially given to someone who lived in or near this town.
In the 16th century, there are records of a Merbach family living in the town of Worms, located in the Rhineland-Palatinate region of Germany. This family may have been among the earliest bearers of the Merbach surname.
One notable individual with the surname Merbach was Johann Merbach, a German theologian and professor who lived from 1585 to 1648. He was a prominent figure in the Lutheran Church and served as a professor at the University of Giessen.
Another individual with the Merbach surname was Paul Merbach, a German philosopher and academic who lived from 1853 to 1920. He was a professor at the University of Halle and wrote several works on logic and metaphysics.
In the 19th century, there was a Merbach family living in the town of Wittgenstein, located in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. One member of this family, Karl Merbach, was a noted painter and artist who lived from 1824 to 1884.
The Merbach surname can also be found in other parts of Europe, such as Switzerland and France, likely due to migration and intermarriage over the centuries. However, its origins are strongly rooted in Germany.
It is worth noting that the name Merbach has also been associated with various place names in Germany, such as Merbach bei Gemünden, a village in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate, and Merbach, a district of the town of Mühlhausen in the state of Thuringia.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Merbach
Among Census respondents with the surname Merbach, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.9%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Merbach 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 Merbach surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White95.3% · 101
- Hispanic or Latino1.9% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.9% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Merbach
Merbach 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
#141,140
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 118
-1 bearers (-0.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 9,774 places
2020
#152,339
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 106
-12 bearers (-10.2%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 11,199 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #131,366 | 119 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #141,140 | 118 | 0.04 | -1 bearers (-0.8%) | Down 9,774 places |
| 2020 | #152,339 | 106 | 0.04 | -12 bearers (-10.2%) | Down 11,199 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 Merbach 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 | #141,140 | #152,339 | -7.9% |
| Count | 118 | 106 | -10.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -11.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Merbach bearers went from 118 to 106 (-10.2% change). The surname moved down 11,199 positions in the national ranking, going from #141,140 to #152,339.
FAQ
Merbach surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Merbach?
Name Census estimates that about 122 living Americans carry the surname Merbach. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,809,462 residents.
How common is Merbach?
Merbach ranks #152,339 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 106 people with the surname Merbach. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (122), 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 Merbach.
Has Merbach become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Merbach went from 118 recorded bearers to 106. That is a decrease of 12 (-10.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #141,140 to #152,339.
What does the Census say about the background of Merbach?
Among Census respondents with the surname Merbach, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.9%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.9%). 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 Merbach in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.3% (101 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Merbach appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (95.3%), Hispanic (1.9%), American Indian/Alaska Native (1.9%). 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 Merbach (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 Merbach mean?
A surname derived from a place name in Germany. 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 Merbach (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 Americans have the surname Merbach?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.