2000
#5,982
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,300
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.96
Rare Last name
Petry
An occupational surname referring to a peddler or one who sells small wares.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,101 Americans carry the last name Petry. That puts it at #6,172 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.78 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 56,180 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Petry 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
6.1K
1 in 56,180
Census rank
#6,172
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,320 bearers of the surname Petry in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.78 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6172nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Petry, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.1%. The next largest groups are Black (6.9%) and Hispanic (3.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Petry
The surname Petry originates from Germany, with records dating back to the 16th century. It is likely derived from the German given name Peter, which itself comes from the Greek word "petros" meaning "rock." The name may have initially been a patronymic, indicating "son of Peter."
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Petry surname can be found in the parish records of the town of Lübeck, Germany, where a man named Hans Petry was mentioned in 1523. Another early reference is from the town of Hesse, where a certain Johann Petry was listed in tax records from 1587.
The Petry name appears to have been particularly prevalent in the regions of Rhineland-Palatinate and Saxony-Anhalt in central Germany. There are also records of the name in the nearby areas of the Netherlands and France, likely due to migration patterns.
An individual of historical note bearing the Petry surname was Johann Georg Petry (1693-1767), a German writer and theologian who authored several works on religious philosophy. Another notable figure was Johann Samuel Petry (1738-1818), a German mathematician and astronomer who made significant contributions to the field of celestial mechanics.
In the 19th century, the Petry surname can be found in records from the United States, likely due to immigration from Germany. One such example is Jacob Petry (1802-1887), a German-born American farmer and politician who served as a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly.
Other notable individuals with the Petry surname include:
1. Martin Petry (1870-1942), a German Catholic priest and writer.
2. Georg Petry (1879-1970), a German painter and illustrator.
3. Hans Petry (1898-1968), a German World War II general.
4. Eva Petry (1897-1992), an African American writer and author of the novel "The Street."
5. Glen Petry (born 1941), an American politician who served as a member of the West Virginia House of Delegates.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Petry
Among Census respondents with the surname Petry, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.1%. The next largest groups are Black (6.9%) and Hispanic (3.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Petry 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 Petry surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White86.1% · 4,579
- Black or African American6.9% · 365
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 184
- Two or more races2.9% · 156
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 29
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 7
Timeline
Historical Census data for Petry
Petry 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
#6,178
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,538
+238 bearers (+4.5%)
Per 100,000 1.88
Rank movement Down 196 places
2020
#6,172
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,320
-218 bearers (-3.9%)
Per 100,000 1.78
Rank movement Up 6 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,982 | 5,300 | 1.96 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,178 | 5,538 | 1.88 | +238 bearers (+4.5%) | Down 196 places |
| 2020 | #6,172 | 5,320 | 1.78 | -218 bearers (-3.9%) | Up 6 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 Petry 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 | #6,178 | #6,172 | 0.1% |
| Count | 5,538 | 5,320 | -3.9% |
| Per 100K | 1.88 | 1.78 | -5.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Petry bearers went from 5,538 to 5,320 (-3.9% change). The surname moved up 6 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,178 to #6,172.
FAQ
Petry surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Petry?
Name Census estimates that about 6,101 living Americans carry the surname Petry. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 56,180 residents.
How common is Petry?
Petry ranks #6,172 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.78 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,320 people with the surname Petry. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,101), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.78 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.78 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Petry.
Has Petry become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Petry went from 5,538 recorded bearers to 5,320. That is a decrease of 218 (-3.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #6,178 to #6,172.
What does the Census say about the background of Petry?
Among Census respondents with the surname Petry, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.1%. The next largest groups are Black (6.9%) and Hispanic (3.5%). 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 Petry in the 2020 Census, accounting for 86.1% (4,579 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Petry appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (86.1%), Black (6.9%), Hispanic (3.5%). 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 Petry (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 Petry mean?
An occupational surname referring to a peddler or one who sells small wares. 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 Petry (1.78 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 Americans have the surname Petry?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.