2010
#158,432
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.03
Very Rare Last name
Pehringer
A surname derived from a German place name referring to a person from a specific town or region.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 117 Americans carry the last name Pehringer. That puts it at #154,755 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,929,524 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Pehringer 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
117
1 in 2,929,524
Census rank
#154,755
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
102
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 102 bearers of the surname Pehringer in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 154755th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Pehringer, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Black (2.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Pehringer
The surname Pehringer originated in Germany and Austria during the late medieval period, around the 13th or 14th century. It is believed to have derived from the German word "pehren," meaning to pitch or tar, suggesting that the name may have initially referred to an occupation involving the production or application of tar or pitch.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Pehringer can be found in the town records of Augsburg, Germany, dating back to the late 15th century. In these records, a certain Hans Pehringer is mentioned as a resident of the city in the year 1492.
The name Pehringer also appears in various historical documents from the Austrian region, particularly in the areas around Vienna and Lower Austria. In the 16th century, a notable figure bearing this name was Johann Pehringer, a merchant and landowner who lived in the city of Krems an der Donau.
During the 17th century, the Pehringer family gained prominence in the region of Styria, located in present-day Austria. One prominent member was Johann Georg Pehringer (1630-1701), a lawyer and politician who served as the mayor of Graz, the capital of Styria.
Another notable figure with the surname Pehringer was Franz Xaver Pehringer (1784-1854), an Austrian painter and engraver who was active in the early 19th century. He is known for his landscapes and religious works, many of which can be found in churches and galleries across Austria.
In the late 19th century, a prominent German industrialist named Karl Pehringer (1848-1912) established a successful manufacturing company in the city of Nuremberg, specializing in the production of metal goods and machinery.
These are just a few examples of individuals bearing the surname Pehringer throughout history, but the name has a rich heritage that can be traced back to its origins in the medieval German and Austrian regions.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Pehringer
Among Census respondents with the surname Pehringer, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Black (2.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Pehringer 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 Pehringer surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.2% · 94
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 3
- Black or African American2.0% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.0% · 2
- Two or more races1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Pehringer
Pehringer appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#154,755
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
+0 bearers (+0.0%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Up 3,677 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #158,432 | 102 | 0.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #154,755 | 102 | 0.03 | +0 bearers (+0.0%) | Up 3,677 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 Pehringer 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 | #158,432 | #154,755 | 2.3% |
| Count | 102 | 102 | 0.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.03 | 13.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Pehringer bearers went from 102 to 102 (+0.0% change). The surname moved up 3,677 positions in the national ranking, going from #158,432 to #154,755.
FAQ
Pehringer surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Pehringer?
Name Census estimates that about 117 living Americans carry the surname Pehringer. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,929,524 residents.
How common is Pehringer?
Pehringer ranks #154,755 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 102 people with the surname Pehringer. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (117), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Pehringer.
Has Pehringer become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Pehringer went from 102 recorded bearers to 102. That is an increase of 0 (+0.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #158,432 to #154,755.
What does the Census say about the background of Pehringer?
Among Census respondents with the surname Pehringer, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Black (2.0%). 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 Pehringer in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.2% (94 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Pehringer appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.2%), Hispanic (2.9%), Black (2.0%). 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 Pehringer (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 Pehringer mean?
A surname derived from a German place name referring to a person from a specific town or region. 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 Pehringer (0.03 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 Pehringer?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.