2000
#6,167
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,114
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.90
Rare Last name
Oswalt
Derived from the Old English elements "os" meaning "god" and "weald" meaning "power," referring to divine power or rule.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,705 Americans carry the last name Oswalt. That puts it at #6,550 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.66 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 60,080 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Oswalt 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
5.7K
1 in 60,080
Census rank
#6,550
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,975 bearers of the surname Oswalt in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.66 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6550th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Oswalt, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (3.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Oswalt
The surname Oswalt is of German origin, derived from the Old German personal name "Oswald." This name is composed of the elements "os" meaning "god" and "wald" meaning "rule" or "power." It likely originated in the 8th or 9th century during the Carolingian dynasty in the Frankish Empire, which covered modern-day Germany, France, and parts of Italy.
The earliest recorded spelling of the name Oswalt can be found in the Codex Traditionum Corbeiensium, a 9th-century medieval cartulary from the Benedictine abbey of Corvey in present-day North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. This document mentions an individual named "Osuualdus" who lived in the region during that time.
In the 11th century, the name appears in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of land and property in England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. The entry "Oswald" is listed as a landholder in Yorkshire, suggesting that individuals with this name had migrated to England by that point.
One of the earliest known bearers of the surname Oswalt was Oswald von Wolkenstein (c. 1376 - 1445), a renowned German Minnesinger and poet from a noble family in South Tyrol, located in modern-day Italy.
Another notable figure with this name was Johann Oswalt (1624 - 1700), a German Baroque composer and organist who was appointed as the court Kapellmeister in the Duchy of Württemberg.
In the 18th century, Johann Philipp Oswalt (1753 - 1804) was a German artist and engraver known for his landscape paintings and etchings depicting scenes from the Rhineland region.
During the 19th century, Friedrich Oswalt (1828 - 1905) was a German architect and urban planner who designed several notable buildings in Berlin, including the former Reichsbank building.
In more recent history, Patton Oswalt (born 1969) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and writer who has appeared in numerous films and television shows, and has received critical acclaim for his comedy specials and roles in projects like "King of Queens" and "Ratatouille."
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Oswalt
Among Census respondents with the surname Oswalt, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (3.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Oswalt 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 Oswalt surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.3% · 4,593
- Two or more races3.3% · 165
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 148
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 26
- Black or African American0.5% · 23
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 20
Timeline
Historical Census data for Oswalt
Oswalt 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
#6,524
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,198
+84 bearers (+1.6%)
Per 100,000 1.76
Rank movement Down 357 places
2020
#6,550
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,975
-223 bearers (-4.3%)
Per 100,000 1.66
Rank movement Down 26 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,167 | 5,114 | 1.90 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,524 | 5,198 | 1.76 | +84 bearers (+1.6%) | Down 357 places |
| 2020 | #6,550 | 4,975 | 1.66 | -223 bearers (-4.3%) | Down 26 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 Oswalt 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 | #6,524 | #6,550 | -0.4% |
| Count | 5,198 | 4,975 | -4.3% |
| Per 100K | 1.76 | 1.66 | -5.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Oswalt bearers went from 5,198 to 4,975 (-4.3% change). The surname moved down 26 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,524 to #6,550.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Oswalt
FAQ
Oswalt surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Oswalt?
Name Census estimates that about 5,705 living Americans carry the surname Oswalt. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 60,080 residents.
How common is Oswalt?
Oswalt ranks #6,550 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.66 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 4,975 people with the surname Oswalt. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,705), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.66 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.66 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Oswalt.
Has Oswalt become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Oswalt went from 5,198 recorded bearers to 4,975. That is a decrease of 223 (-4.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #6,524 to #6,550.
What does the Census say about the background of Oswalt?
Among Census respondents with the surname Oswalt, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (3.0%). 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 Oswalt in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.3% (4,593 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Oswalt appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.3%), Two or More Races (3.3%), Hispanic (3.0%). 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 Oswalt (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 Oswalt mean?
Derived from the Old English elements "os" meaning "god" and "weald" meaning "power," referring to divine power or rule. 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 Oswalt (1.66 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 Oswalt?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.