2000
#126,400
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 125
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Patzelt
A German surname derived from an old personal name of Germanic origin.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 127 Americans carry the last name Patzelt. That puts it at #148,665 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,698,853 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Patzelt 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
127
1 in 2,698,853
Census rank
#148,665
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
111
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 111 bearers of the surname Patzelt in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 148665th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Patzelt, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (9.0%) and Two or More Races (2.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Patzelt
The surname Patzelt is of German origin, with its earliest known use dating back to the 14th century. The name is derived from the Old German words "patz" and "holz," which together mean "patch of woodland." This suggests that the name was initially given to someone who lived near or worked in a wooded area.
The name Patzelt was first recorded in the southern regions of Germany, particularly in Bavaria and parts of what is now Austria. It is believed to have originated as a descriptive surname, referring to a person's occupation or place of residence.
One of the earliest documented references to the name Patzelt can be found in the municipal records of the town of Landshut, Bavaria, dating back to 1382. The record mentions a certain Hans Patzelt, who was a local landowner.
In the 15th century, the name Patzelt appeared in various historical documents across southern Germany and Austria. For instance, a manuscript from 1468 mentions a Konrad Patzelt, a farmer from the village of Rottenburg, near Munich.
As people began to migrate and settle in different regions, the name Patzelt spread to other parts of Germany and beyond. In the 16th century, the name was recorded in the town of Freiburg im Breisgau, where a Johann Patzelt was listed as a merchant in the city's trade records.
Notable individuals with the surname Patzelt include:
1. Friedrich Patzelt (1789-1868), a German painter and lithographer known for his landscapes and architectural works.
2. Julius Patzelt (1856-1923), an Austrian politician and lawyer who served as the Minister-President of Salzburg from 1918 to 1919.
3. Erwin Patzelt (1891-1976), a German botanist and ecologist who made significant contributions to the study of plant communities and their distribution patterns.
4. Maximilian Patzelt (1920-2002), an Austrian actor and director who appeared in numerous films and theater productions throughout his career.
5. Hans Patzelt (born 1937), a German physicist and materials scientist known for his research on amorphous solids and the development of new materials for optoelectronic applications.
While the name Patzelt may have evolved over time, with variations in spelling and pronunciation, it has maintained its connection to its German roots and the original meaning associated with its origins in the woodlands of southern Germany.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Patzelt
Among Census respondents with the surname Patzelt, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (9.0%) and Two or More Races (2.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Patzelt 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 Patzelt surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White85.6% · 95
- Hispanic or Latino9.0% · 10
- Two or more races2.7% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.8% · 2
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Patzelt
Patzelt 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
#145,220
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
-11 bearers (-8.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 18,820 places
2020
#148,665
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
-3 bearers (-2.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 3,445 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #126,400 | 125 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #145,220 | 114 | 0.04 | -11 bearers (-8.8%) | Down 18,820 places |
| 2020 | #148,665 | 111 | 0.04 | -3 bearers (-2.6%) | Down 3,445 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 Patzelt 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 | #145,220 | #148,665 | -2.4% |
| Count | 114 | 111 | -2.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -7.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Patzelt bearers went from 114 to 111 (-2.6% change). The surname moved down 3,445 positions in the national ranking, going from #145,220 to #148,665.
FAQ
Patzelt surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Patzelt?
Name Census estimates that about 127 living Americans carry the surname Patzelt. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,698,853 residents.
How common is Patzelt?
Patzelt ranks #148,665 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 111 people with the surname Patzelt. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (127), 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 Patzelt.
Has Patzelt become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Patzelt went from 114 recorded bearers to 111. That is a decrease of 3 (-2.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #145,220 to #148,665.
What does the Census say about the background of Patzelt?
Among Census respondents with the surname Patzelt, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (9.0%) and Two or More Races (2.7%). 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 Patzelt in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.6% (95 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Patzelt appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (85.6%), Hispanic (9.0%), Two or More Races (2.7%). 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 Patzelt (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 Patzelt mean?
A German surname derived from an old personal name of Germanic origin. 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 Patzelt (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 people have the surname Patzelt?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.