Find out how popular the last name Panzer is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Panzer.

Panzer, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Panzer surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Panzer in America

Panzer is the 17896th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Panzer surname appeared 1,562 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Panzer.

We can also compare 2010 data for Panzer to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Panzer

The surname Panzer has its origins in the German language. It is derived from the German word 'Panzer', which means 'armor' or 'protective covering'. The name likely originated in the late Middle Ages or early modern period, possibly as a descriptive surname for someone who worked with armor or had some association with the production or use of armor.

The earliest recorded instances of the surname Panzer can be traced back to the 16th century in various German-speaking regions of Europe. One of the earliest known individuals with this surname was Hans Panzer, a blacksmith from Nuremberg, Germany, who was mentioned in records from the year 1543.

In the 17th century, the name Panzer appeared in several historical documents, including church records and municipal registers. For example, Johann Panzer, a merchant from Frankfurt, was mentioned in a trade document from 1672.

During the 18th and 19th centuries, the Panzer surname became more widespread across German-speaking areas, particularly in regions such as Bavaria, Saxony, and Prussia. Notable individuals with this surname include Johann Friedrich Panzer (1738-1805), a German entomologist and naturalist, and Georg Wolfgang Franz Panzer (1755-1829), a German painter and engraver.

In the 20th century, the Panzer surname gained further prominence due to its association with armored vehicles, particularly tanks, during World War II. Erwin Rommel (1891-1944), known as the "Desert Fox," was a famous German field marshal who commanded Panzer divisions during the war.

Other notable individuals with the Panzer surname include Katharina Panzer (1627-1705), a German Lutheran writer and hymn composer, and Konrad Panzer (1526-1588), a German Renaissance humanist and educator who served as the rector of the University of Leipzig.

It is worth noting that while the Panzer surname is primarily associated with German-speaking regions, it has also been adopted by individuals in other parts of the world, particularly through immigration and cultural exchange.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Panzer

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Panzer.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Panzer was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Panzer has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Panzer was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Panzer, please contact us.

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