2000
#130,443
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 120
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Ochsenhirt
A German occupational surname referring to an ox herder or cow herder.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 134 Americans carry the last name Ochsenhirt. That puts it at #144,270 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,557,868 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Ochsenhirt 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
134
1 in 2,557,868
Census rank
#144,270
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
117
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 117 bearers of the surname Ochsenhirt in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 144270th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Ochsenhirt, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Ochsenhirt
The surname Ochsenhirt originated in Germany and dates back to the medieval period. It is a compound word derived from the Middle High German words "ohse" meaning ox and "hirt" meaning herdsman or cowherd. Thus, the name literally translates to "ox herdsman" and likely referred to someone whose occupation was tending to oxen.
While the exact origin of the name is unclear, surnames derived from occupations were common in medieval Germany. It is possible that the earliest bearers of the Ochsenhirt name were cowherds or oxen herders who adopted the name to distinguish themselves from others.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Ochsenhirt name can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Anhaltinus, a collection of historical documents from the Principality of Anhalt in central Germany. In this manuscript, a certain Johann Ochsenhirt is mentioned as a witness in a land transaction dated 1402.
Another early reference to the Ochsenhirt name appears in the Schaffhausen Burgerbuch, a citizen register from the Swiss city of Schaffhausen. This record, dating back to 1436, lists a Hans Ochsenhirt as a resident of the city.
In the 16th century, there are records of an Ochsenhirt family living in the town of Coburg, Bavaria. One notable member was Christoph Ochsenhirt, a merchant and alderman who lived from 1525 to 1598.
During the 17th century, the name Ochsenhirt was found in various regions of Germany, including Saxony and Franconia. A famous bearer of the name was Johann Georg Ochsenhirt (1611-1675), a Lutheran theologian and professor at the University of Wittenberg.
In the 18th century, the Ochsenhirt name spread to other parts of Europe, including Austria and Switzerland. One notable individual was Johann Baptist Ochsenhirt (1726-1788), a Swiss painter and engraver known for his religious works.
Throughout history, the Ochsenhirt surname has been associated with various professions, including farmers, merchants, and academics. While the occupational origin of the name is clear, it has since become a hereditary surname passed down through generations.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ochsenhirt
Among Census respondents with the surname Ochsenhirt, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Ochsenhirt 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 Ochsenhirt surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White95.7% · 112
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 4
- Two or more races0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Ochsenhirt
Ochsenhirt 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
#136,449
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 123
+3 bearers (+2.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 6,006 places
2020
#144,270
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
-6 bearers (-4.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 7,821 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #130,443 | 120 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #136,449 | 123 | 0.04 | +3 bearers (+2.5%) | Down 6,006 places |
| 2020 | #144,270 | 117 | 0.04 | -6 bearers (-4.9%) | Down 7,821 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 Ochsenhirt 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 | #136,449 | #144,270 | -5.7% |
| Count | 123 | 117 | -4.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -2.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Ochsenhirt bearers went from 123 to 117 (-4.9% change). The surname moved down 7,821 positions in the national ranking, going from #136,449 to #144,270.
FAQ
Ochsenhirt surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Ochsenhirt?
Name Census estimates that about 134 living Americans carry the surname Ochsenhirt. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,557,868 residents.
How common is Ochsenhirt?
Ochsenhirt ranks #144,270 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 117 people with the surname Ochsenhirt. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (134), 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 Ochsenhirt.
Has Ochsenhirt become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Ochsenhirt went from 123 recorded bearers to 117. That is a decrease of 6 (-4.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #136,449 to #144,270.
What does the Census say about the background of Ochsenhirt?
Among Census respondents with the surname Ochsenhirt, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (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 Ochsenhirt in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.7% (112 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Ochsenhirt appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (95.7%), Hispanic (3.4%), Two or More Races (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 Ochsenhirt (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 Ochsenhirt mean?
A German occupational surname referring to an ox herder or cow herder. 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 Ochsenhirt (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 Ochsenhirt?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the surname Ochsenhirt at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.