2010
#160,975
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 100
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.03
Very Rare Last name
Niedergeses
A German surname likely derived from a place name referring to someone from Niedergeses.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 130 Americans carry the last name Niedergeses. That puts it at #147,221 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,636,572 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Niedergeses 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
130
1 in 2,636,572
Census rank
#147,221
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
113
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 113 bearers of the surname Niedergeses in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 147221st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Niedergeses, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.7%) and Hispanic (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Niedergeses
The surname Niedergeses has its origins in Germany, with the earliest recorded instances dating back to the 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the German words "nieder" meaning "lower" and "geses" referring to a specific region or area. This suggests that the name originated from a place name, potentially indicating that the earliest bearers of this surname hailed from a lower or less elevated area called Geses.
One of the earliest known records of the name Niedergeses can be found in the parish records of the town of Lüneburg, located in the northern German state of Lower Saxony. These records, dating back to the late 1500s, mention a family with the surname Niedergeses residing in the area.
In the 17th century, the Niedergeses name appears in various church records and land ownership documents across various regions of Germany, particularly in the states of Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia. This indicates that the name had spread across different parts of the country by this time.
A notable bearer of the Niedergeses surname was Hans Niedergeses, a merchant and trader who lived in the city of Hamburg during the mid-17th century. Records show that he was involved in the lucrative trade of spices and textiles between Northern Europe and the Hanseatic cities.
Another individual of historical significance was Johann Niedergeses, born in 1723 in the town of Osnabrück. He was a renowned clockmaker and inventor, known for his innovative designs and contributions to the field of horology.
In the 19th century, the Niedergeses surname gained recognition through the work of Friedrich Niedergeses, a respected linguist and philologist born in 1841 in Hanover. He authored several influential works on German dialects and the evolution of the language.
Another noteworthy figure was Gertrude Niedergeses, a pioneering educator born in 1873 in the city of Cologne. She founded one of the first schools for girls in the region, advocating for equal educational opportunities for women during a time when such initiatives were rare.
Towards the end of the 19th century and into the early 20th century, the Niedergeses name can be found in various immigration records, indicating that some members of the family had left Germany and settled in other parts of the world, such as the United States and Canada.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Niedergeses
Among Census respondents with the surname Niedergeses, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.7%) and Hispanic (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Niedergeses 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 Niedergeses surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.7% · 107
- Two or more races2.7% · 3
- Hispanic or Latino0.9% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Niedergeses
Niedergeses 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
#147,221
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
+13 bearers (+13.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 13,754 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #160,975 | 100 | 0.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #147,221 | 113 | 0.04 | +13 bearers (+13.0%) | Up 13,754 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 Niedergeses 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 | #160,975 | #147,221 | 8.5% |
| Count | 100 | 113 | 13.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.04 | 26.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Niedergeses bearers went from 100 to 113 (+13.0% change). The surname moved up 13,754 positions in the national ranking, going from #160,975 to #147,221.
FAQ
Niedergeses surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Niedergeses?
Name Census estimates that about 130 living Americans carry the surname Niedergeses. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,636,572 residents.
How common is Niedergeses?
Niedergeses ranks #147,221 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 113 people with the surname Niedergeses. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (130), 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 Niedergeses.
Has Niedergeses become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Niedergeses went from 100 recorded bearers to 113. That is an increase of 13 (+13.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #160,975 to #147,221.
What does the Census say about the background of Niedergeses?
Among Census respondents with the surname Niedergeses, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.7%) and Hispanic (0.9%). 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 Niedergeses in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.7% (107 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Niedergeses appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.7%), Two or More Races (2.7%), Hispanic (0.9%). 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 Niedergeses (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 Niedergeses mean?
A German surname likely derived from a place name referring to someone from Niedergeses. 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 Niedergeses (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 Niedergeses?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.