2000
#12,305
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,317
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.86
Rare Last name
Pankratz
A German occupational surname referring to a person who crafted armor or reinforced clothing.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,657 Americans carry the last name Pankratz. That puts it at #12,722 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.78 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 129,001 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Pankratz 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
2.7K
1 in 129,001
Census rank
#12,722
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,317 bearers of the surname Pankratz in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.78 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12722nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Pankratz, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (3.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Pankratz
The surname Pankratz is of German origin and can be traced back to the Middle Ages. It is derived from the German words "Pank" meaning "bench" and "Kratz" meaning "to scratch or scrape." This suggests that the name may have originated from an occupation or trade related to woodworking or carpentry.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Pankratz can be found in the Hirsau Codex, a 12th-century manuscript from the Hirsau Abbey in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. This codex contains a list of names, including Pankratz, indicating that the name was already in use during that time period.
The name Pankratz has been associated with various locations in Germany, such as Pankraz, a village in the district of Amberg-Sulzbach, Bavaria, and Pankratzberg, a mountain in the Black Forest region of Baden-Württemberg. These place names may have influenced the spelling and spread of the surname.
One notable individual with the surname Pankratz was Johann Pankratz (1472-1533), a German Renaissance scholar and humanist who served as a professor at the University of Wittenberg. Another famous bearer of the name was Johann Pankratz von Freyberg (1673-1733), a German architect and engineer known for his work on the construction of the Zwinger Palace in Dresden.
In the 16th century, the surname Pankratz appeared in various records, including the Kirchenbücher (church books) of several German towns and villages. For example, the birth of Hans Pankratz was recorded in the Kirchenbuch of Wörlitz, Saxony-Anhalt, in 1568.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the name Pankratz was also found in various parts of Europe, including the Netherlands and Poland. One notable individual from this period was Bartholomäus Pankratz (1647-1704), a German composer and organist who served at the court of the Duke of Saxe-Lauenburg.
In the 19th century, the surname Pankratz continued to be prominent in Germany, with individuals such as Karl Friedrich Pankratz (1821-1898), a German jurist and politician who served as a member of the Reichstag (German parliament) from 1871 to 1874.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Pankratz
Among Census respondents with the surname Pankratz, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (3.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Pankratz 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 Pankratz surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.2% · 2,137
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 78
- Two or more races3.3% · 76
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 18
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 7
- Black or African American0.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Pankratz
Pankratz 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
#12,435
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,498
+181 bearers (+7.8%)
Per 100,000 0.85
Rank movement Down 130 places
2020
#12,722
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,317
-181 bearers (-7.2%)
Per 100,000 0.78
Rank movement Down 287 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,305 | 2,317 | 0.86 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,435 | 2,498 | 0.85 | +181 bearers (+7.8%) | Down 130 places |
| 2020 | #12,722 | 2,317 | 0.78 | -181 bearers (-7.2%) | Down 287 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 Pankratz 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 | #12,435 | #12,722 | -2.3% |
| Count | 2,498 | 2,317 | -7.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.85 | 0.78 | -8.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Pankratz bearers went from 2,498 to 2,317 (-7.2% change). The surname moved down 287 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,435 to #12,722.
FAQ
Pankratz surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Pankratz?
Name Census estimates that about 2,657 living Americans carry the surname Pankratz. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 129,001 residents.
How common is Pankratz?
Pankratz ranks #12,722 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.78 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 2,317 people with the surname Pankratz. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,657), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.78 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.78 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 Pankratz.
Has Pankratz become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Pankratz went from 2,498 recorded bearers to 2,317. That is a decrease of 181 (-7.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #12,435 to #12,722.
What does the Census say about the background of Pankratz?
Among Census respondents with the surname Pankratz, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (3.3%). 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 Pankratz in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.2% (2,137 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Pankratz appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.2%), Hispanic (3.4%), Two or More Races (3.3%). 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 Pankratz (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 Pankratz mean?
A German occupational surname referring to a person who crafted armor or reinforced clothing. 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 Pankratz (0.78 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 have the last name Pankratz?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the last name Pankratz at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.