2000
#23,986
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 982
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.36
Rare Last name
Neidlinger
A surname derived from a German place name, potentially referring to someone from a town called Neidlingen.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,128 Americans carry the last name Neidlinger. That puts it at #26,162 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.33 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 303,860 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Neidlinger 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
1.1K
1 in 303,860
Census rank
#26,162
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
984
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 984 bearers of the surname Neidlinger in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.33 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 26162nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Neidlinger, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.6%) and Hispanic (2.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Neidlinger
The surname Neidlinger originates from the German-speaking regions of Europe, likely from the southern parts of modern-day Germany or Austria, during the late medieval period around the 14th or 15th century. The name is derived from the Old High German word "nidiling," which means "low-lying" or "lowland," suggesting that the earliest bearers of this surname may have lived in valleys or lowland areas.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Neidlinger name can be found in the Bavarian town of Rosenheim, where a certain Johannes Neidlinger was mentioned in a municipal record from the year 1432. In the 16th century, a variant spelling "Neidlinger" appeared in the town of Augsburg, where a merchant named Hans Neidlinger was listed in a trade register in 1557.
During the 17th century, the name Neidlinger spread to other parts of Europe, with records showing individuals bearing this surname in Switzerland and the Alsace region of France. In 1634, a Jakob Neidlinger was born in the Swiss city of Zurich, while a family by the name of Neidlinger settled in the Alsatian town of Strasbourg in the late 1600s.
Notable individuals with the surname Neidlinger include the German composer and organist Johann Neidlinger (1619-1683), who served as the court musician for the Prince of Hesse-Darmstadt. Another prominent figure was the Austrian painter and engraver Johann Evangelist Neidlinger (1738-1825), known for his religious and historical works.
In the 19th century, the Neidlinger name appeared in various parts of the German-speaking world, with individuals such as the Bavarian philosopher and writer Georg Neidlinger (1804-1872) and the Austrian painter Joseph Neidlinger (1835-1909) making their mark in their respective fields.
The surname Neidlinger has also been associated with place names in Germany, such as the village of Neidlingen in the state of Baden-Württemberg, which may have influenced the spelling and pronunciation of the name in certain regions.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Neidlinger
Among Census respondents with the surname Neidlinger, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.6%) and Hispanic (2.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Neidlinger 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 Neidlinger surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.0% · 905
- Two or more races3.6% · 35
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 29
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 6
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 5
- Black or African American0.4% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Neidlinger
Neidlinger 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
#24,237
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,035
+53 bearers (+5.4%)
Per 100,000 0.35
Rank movement Down 251 places
2020
#26,162
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 984
-51 bearers (-4.9%)
Per 100,000 0.33
Rank movement Down 1,925 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #23,986 | 982 | 0.36 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #24,237 | 1,035 | 0.35 | +53 bearers (+5.4%) | Down 251 places |
| 2020 | #26,162 | 984 | 0.33 | -51 bearers (-4.9%) | Down 1,925 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 Neidlinger 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 | #24,237 | #26,162 | -7.9% |
| Count | 1,035 | 984 | -4.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.35 | 0.33 | -5.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Neidlinger bearers went from 1,035 to 984 (-4.9% change). The surname moved down 1,925 positions in the national ranking, going from #24,237 to #26,162.
FAQ
Neidlinger surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Neidlinger?
Name Census estimates that about 1,128 living Americans carry the surname Neidlinger. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 303,860 residents.
How common is Neidlinger?
Neidlinger ranks #26,162 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.33 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 984 people with the surname Neidlinger. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,128), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.33 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.33 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 Neidlinger.
Has Neidlinger become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Neidlinger went from 1,035 recorded bearers to 984. That is a decrease of 51 (-4.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #24,237 to #26,162.
What does the Census say about the background of Neidlinger?
Among Census respondents with the surname Neidlinger, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.6%) and Hispanic (2.9%). 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 Neidlinger in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.0% (905 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Neidlinger appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.0%), Two or More Races (3.6%), Hispanic (2.9%). 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 Neidlinger (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 Neidlinger mean?
A surname derived from a German place name, potentially referring to someone from a town called Neidlingen. 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 Neidlinger (0.33 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 are called Neidlinger?
You can see how common the surname Neidlinger is on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.