2000
#122,534
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 130
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Papstein
German occupational surname meaning "son of the pope" or "little pope".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 133 Americans carry the last name Papstein. That puts it at #145,028 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,577,100 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Papstein 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
133
1 in 2,577,100
Census rank
#145,028
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
116
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 116 bearers of the surname Papstein in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 145028th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Papstein, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.2%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Papstein
The surname Papstein is of German origin and can be traced back to the late 15th century. It is derived from the German words "Papst" meaning "Pope" and "Stein" meaning "stone" or "rock". This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone who lived near a prominent rock or stone formation, or perhaps even in a stony area associated with the Catholic Church or a Pope.
One of the earliest recorded references to the name Papstein is found in a 1492 document from the town of Bamberg in Bavaria, Germany. The document mentions a certain "Hans Papstein" who was a stonemason working on the construction of the town's cathedral. This provides insight into the name's possible origins and connections to the stoneworking trade.
Another early instance of the name appears in the 1534 Augsburg tax records, which list a "Peter Papstein" as a resident of the city. This suggests that the name had spread beyond its initial regional confines by the 16th century.
One of the earliest known bearers of the Papstein name was Johann Papstein, a Protestant theologian and author born in Wittenberg, Germany in 1549. He wrote several influential works on religious doctrine and participated in various theological debates of his time.
A notable figure in the 17th century was Hans Papstein (1612-1679), a German military officer who served in the Thirty Years' War. He is recorded as having participated in several key battles and campaigns during the conflict.
In the 19th century, the name Papstein gained some prominence in the field of education. Friedrich Papstein (1814-1891) was a respected German educator and school administrator who helped establish several successful educational institutions in his homeland.
It is also worth mentioning that the name Papstein has occasionally appeared in various forms and spellings over the centuries, such as Papststein, Pabststein, and Bapstein, among others. These variations likely arose due to regional dialects and evolved over time.
While the Papstein surname may not be among the most common in the German-speaking world, its historical significance and connections to various trades, professions, and notable individuals make it a fascinating example of the rich tapestry of German surnames and their origins.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Papstein
Among Census respondents with the surname Papstein, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.2%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Papstein 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 Papstein surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.0% · 109
- Two or more races5.2% · 6
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Papstein
Papstein 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
#140,157
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 119
-11 bearers (-8.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 17,623 places
2020
#145,028
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 116
-3 bearers (-2.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 4,871 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #122,534 | 130 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #140,157 | 119 | 0.04 | -11 bearers (-8.5%) | Down 17,623 places |
| 2020 | #145,028 | 116 | 0.04 | -3 bearers (-2.5%) | Down 4,871 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 Papstein 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 | #140,157 | #145,028 | -3.5% |
| Count | 119 | 116 | -2.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -3.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Papstein bearers went from 119 to 116 (-2.5% change). The surname moved down 4,871 positions in the national ranking, going from #140,157 to #145,028.
FAQ
Papstein surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Papstein?
Name Census estimates that about 133 living Americans carry the surname Papstein. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,577,100 residents.
How common is Papstein?
Papstein ranks #145,028 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 116 people with the surname Papstein. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (133), 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 Papstein.
Has Papstein become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Papstein went from 119 recorded bearers to 116. That is a decrease of 3 (-2.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #140,157 to #145,028.
What does the Census say about the background of Papstein?
Among Census respondents with the surname Papstein, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.2%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (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 Papstein in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.0% (109 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Papstein appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.0%), Two or More Races (5.2%), American Indian/Alaska Native (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 Papstein (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 Papstein mean?
German occupational surname meaning "son of the pope" or "little pope". 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 Papstein (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 many Americans have the surname Papstein?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.