2000
#146,011
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 104
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Petschow
From a town called Petschow or nearby locality.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 131 Americans carry the last name Petschow. That puts it at #146,495 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,616,445 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Petschow 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
131
1 in 2,616,445
Census rank
#146,495
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
114
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 114 bearers of the surname Petschow in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 146495th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Petschow, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Petschow
The surname Petschow is of German origin, emerging in the late 15th century from the region of Silesia, located in modern-day southwestern Poland. It is believed to be derived from the German word "Petsche," referring to a small stamp or seal, suggesting that the name may have originally been an occupational surname for a seal maker or engraver.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Petschow can be found in the parish records of the town of Breslau (now Wrocław, Poland) from the year 1492, where a certain Hans Petschow is mentioned as a resident. This suggests that the name was already established in the area by the late medieval period.
In the 16th century, the name appears in various legal documents and records from the Duchy of Silesia, which was a part of the Holy Roman Empire at the time. For example, a certain Christoph Petschow is listed as a landowner in the village of Neukirch (now Niwica, Poland) in a land registry from 1567.
During the 17th century, the Petschow family seems to have spread to other parts of Germany, as evidenced by the birth of Johann Petschow in the city of Leipzig in 1623. Johann later became a respected scholar and author, publishing several works on theology and philosophy.
Another notable figure with the surname Petschow was Friedrich Petschow, born in 1798 in Breslau. He was a prominent architect and urban planner, responsible for the design of several iconic buildings and urban developments in his hometown, including the Breslau University Library and the Petschow'sche Garten (Petschow's Garden).
Moving into the 19th century, the name Petschow continued to appear in various records from across Germany and the former territories of Prussia. For instance, Karl Petschow (1812-1889) was a German military officer who served in the Prussian Army and participated in the Austro-Prussian War of 1866.
By the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the Petschow surname had also spread to other parts of Europe, including Austria and Switzerland. One notable figure from this period was the Austrian artist and painter, Rudolf Petschow (1874-1939), who was known for his landscape and portrait paintings in the Impressionist style.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Petschow
Among Census respondents with the surname Petschow, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Petschow 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 Petschow surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.0% · 106
- Two or more races4.4% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.6% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Petschow
Petschow 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
#153,769
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 106
+2 bearers (+1.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 7,758 places
2020
#146,495
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
+8 bearers (+7.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 7,274 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #146,011 | 104 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #153,769 | 106 | 0.04 | +2 bearers (+1.9%) | Down 7,758 places |
| 2020 | #146,495 | 114 | 0.04 | +8 bearers (+7.5%) | Up 7,274 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 Petschow 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 | #153,769 | #146,495 | 4.7% |
| Count | 106 | 114 | 7.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -4.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Petschow bearers went from 106 to 114 (+7.5% change). The surname moved up 7,274 positions in the national ranking, going from #153,769 to #146,495.
FAQ
Petschow surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Petschow?
Name Census estimates that about 131 living Americans carry the surname Petschow. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,616,445 residents.
How common is Petschow?
Petschow ranks #146,495 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 114 people with the surname Petschow. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (131), 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 Petschow.
Has Petschow become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Petschow went from 106 recorded bearers to 114. That is an increase of 8 (+7.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #153,769 to #146,495.
What does the Census say about the background of Petschow?
Among Census respondents with the surname Petschow, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.6%). 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 Petschow in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.0% (106 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Petschow appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.0%), Two or More Races (4.4%), Asian/Pacific Islander (2.6%). 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 Petschow (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 Petschow mean?
From a town called Petschow or nearby locality. 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 Petschow (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 are called Petschow?
You can see how many people have the surname Petschow on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.