2000
#15,327
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,760
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.65
Rare Last name
Ohm
A surname derived from a medieval Germanic personal name or from the German word for elm tree.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,068 Americans carry the last name Ohm. That puts it at #15,602 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.60 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 165,742 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Ohm 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
2.1K
1 in 165,742
Census rank
#15,602
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,803 bearers of the surname Ohm in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.60 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 15602nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Ohm, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.3%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (9.9%) and Hispanic (4.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Ohm
The surname Ohm is of German origin, tracing its roots back to the 16th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old High German word "oumo," meaning "granduncle" or "ancestor." This suggests that the name may have initially been used as a nickname or descriptive term for someone who was an elder or a respected member of the community.
The earliest recorded instances of the name Ohm can be found in various German records and documents from the late 16th and early 17th centuries. One notable example is the mention of a certain Johann Ohm in the church records of the town of Bamberg, dated 1586.
In the 18th century, the surname Ohm gained prominence with the birth of Georg Simon Ohm, a renowned German physicist and mathematician. Born in 1789 in Erlangen, Bavaria, Ohm is best known for his groundbreaking work on electrical circuits and the formulation of Ohm's law, which describes the relationship between voltage, current, and resistance. His contributions to the field of electromagnetism were instrumental in the development of modern electrical engineering.
Another notable figure with the surname Ohm was Martin Ohm, a German jurist and statesman who lived from 1792 to 1872. He served as the Minister of Justice for the Kingdom of Prussia and played a significant role in the legal reforms of the time.
The name Ohm can also be traced back to various place names in Germany, such as the town of Ohmbachsiedlung in Bavaria, which may have influenced the spelling and spread of the surname in certain regions.
Throughout history, there have been several other individuals bearing the surname Ohm who have made notable contributions in various fields. For instance, Johann Ohm (1856-1929) was a German architect known for his work in the Historicist style, while Christian Ohm (1835-1898) was a German-American brewer and businessman who founded the Ohm Brewing Company in Los Angeles, California.
It is worth noting that while the surname Ohm is primarily associated with Germany, it has also spread to other parts of the world through emigration and cultural exchange, making it a part of the diverse tapestry of surnames found in various countries and communities.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ohm
Among Census respondents with the surname Ohm, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.3%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (9.9%) and Hispanic (4.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Ohm 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 Ohm surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White83.3% · 1,501
- Asian and Pacific Islander9.9% · 178
- Hispanic or Latino4.0% · 73
- Two or more races2.1% · 38
- Black or African American0.5% · 9
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Ohm
Ohm 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
#15,464
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,894
+134 bearers (+7.6%)
Per 100,000 0.64
Rank movement Down 137 places
2020
#15,602
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,803
-91 bearers (-4.8%)
Per 100,000 0.60
Rank movement Down 138 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #15,327 | 1,760 | 0.65 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #15,464 | 1,894 | 0.64 | +134 bearers (+7.6%) | Down 137 places |
| 2020 | #15,602 | 1,803 | 0.60 | -91 bearers (-4.8%) | Down 138 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 Ohm 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 | #15,464 | #15,602 | -0.9% |
| Count | 1,894 | 1,803 | -4.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.64 | 0.60 | -5.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Ohm bearers went from 1,894 to 1,803 (-4.8% change). The surname moved down 138 positions in the national ranking, going from #15,464 to #15,602.
FAQ
Ohm surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Ohm?
Name Census estimates that about 2,068 living Americans carry the surname Ohm. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 165,742 residents.
How common is Ohm?
Ohm ranks #15,602 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.60 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 1,803 people with the surname Ohm. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,068), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.6 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.60 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Ohm.
Has Ohm become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Ohm went from 1,894 recorded bearers to 1,803. That is a decrease of 91 (-4.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #15,464 to #15,602.
What does the Census say about the background of Ohm?
Among Census respondents with the surname Ohm, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.3%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (9.9%) and Hispanic (4.0%). 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 Ohm in the 2020 Census, accounting for 83.3% (1,501 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Ohm appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (83.3%), Asian/Pacific Islander (9.9%), Hispanic (4.0%). 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 Ohm (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 Ohm mean?
A surname derived from a medieval Germanic personal name or from the German word for elm tree. 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 Ohm (0.60 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 share the surname Ohm?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.