2010
#160,975
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 100
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.03
Very Rare Last name
Nothum
An invented surname possibly derived from the German prefix "not-" meaning in need or necessity.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 136 Americans carry the last name Nothum. 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 Nothum 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 Nothum 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 Nothum, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Nothum
The surname NOTHUM is believed to have originated in Germany, with records dating back to the late 16th century. It is thought to be derived from the Middle High German words "not" and "humus," which together translate to "fertile soil." This suggests that the name may have initially been given to someone who lived or worked on particularly fertile land.
One of the earliest known references to the NOTHUM surname can be found in a church record from the village of Büdesheim in the Rhineland-Palatinate region of Germany, dated 1587. Here, a man named Hans NOTHUM is listed as a resident of the village. In the following century, a Johannes NOTHUM is recorded as living in the nearby town of Ingelheim in 1692.
As the name spread throughout Germany, variations in spelling began to emerge, such as NOTTHUM, NOTTUM, and NOTHOMB. These alternative spellings can be found in various historical documents from different regions of the country.
One notable figure with the NOTHUM surname was Johann Peter NOTHUM, born in 1733 in the town of Obermoschel in the Palatinate region. He was a respected scholar and theologian who served as a professor at the University of Heidelberg in the late 18th century.
Another individual of note was Maria Anna NOTHUM, born in 1756 in the village of Niedermoschel, also in the Palatinate. She was a prominent figure in the local community and was known for her philanthropic work, particularly in supporting education for underprivileged children.
In the 19th century, the NOTHUM name can be found in various parts of Germany, as well as in neighboring countries where German immigrants settled. For example, a Johann NOTHUM, born in 1819 in the town of Kaiserslautern, is recorded as having immigrated to the United States in the 1850s, settling in the state of Pennsylvania.
Another noteworthy individual was Wilhelm NOTHUM, born in 1842 in the town of Alzey in the Rhineland-Palatinate region. He was a successful businessman and entrepreneur who founded a successful brewing company that bore his name.
As the name spread further afield, variations in spelling continued to occur, with some families adopting the NOTHAM or NOTHEM spellings, particularly in English-speaking countries where the German origin of the name was less well-known.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Nothum
Among Census respondents with the surname Nothum, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Nothum 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 Nothum surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White95.8% · 114
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 1
- Two or more races0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Nothum
Nothum 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
#142,788
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 119
+19 bearers (+19.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 18,187 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 | #142,788 | 119 | 0.04 | +19 bearers (+19.0%) | Up 18,187 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 Nothum 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 | #142,788 | 11.3% |
| Count | 100 | 119 | 19.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.04 | 32.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Nothum bearers went from 100 to 119 (+19.0% change). The surname moved up 18,187 positions in the national ranking, going from #160,975 to #142,788.
FAQ
Nothum surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Nothum?
Name Census estimates that about 136 living Americans carry the surname Nothum. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,520,252 residents.
How common is Nothum?
Nothum 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 Nothum. 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 Nothum.
Has Nothum become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Nothum went from 100 recorded bearers to 119. That is an increase of 19 (+19.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #160,975 to #142,788.
What does the Census say about the background of Nothum?
Among Census respondents with the surname Nothum, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.8%). 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 Nothum in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.8% (114 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Nothum appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (95.8%), Hispanic (2.5%), Asian/Pacific Islander (0.8%). 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 Nothum (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 Nothum mean?
An invented surname possibly derived from the German prefix "not-" meaning in need or necessity. 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 Nothum (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 common is the surname Nothum?
See how common the surname Nothum is on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.