Find out how popular the last name Pfau is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Pfau.

Pfau, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Pfau surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Pfau in America

Pfau is the 14842nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Pfau surname appeared 1,996 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Pfau.

We can also compare 2010 data for Pfau to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Pfau

The surname PFAU originated in Germany and can be traced back to the 13th century. It is derived from the German word "Pfau," which means "peacock." The name likely referred to someone who kept peacocks or may have been a nickname for someone with a colorful or showy appearance.

In the 14th century, the name appears in various German records, including the Codex Diplomaticus Brandenburgensis, a collection of historical documents from the Margraviate of Brandenburg. One of the earliest recorded instances is a mention of a "Johannes Pfau" in a 1341 document from the city of Lübeck.

The PFAU name can also be found in the Urkunden und Akten der Stadt Strassburg, a compilation of records from the city of Strasbourg, with a reference to a "Hermannus Pfau" in a document dated 1376.

During the 15th century, the name spread to other regions of Germany, as evidenced by its appearance in the Württembergisches Urkundenbuch, a collection of documents from the region of Württemberg. In 1487, a "Heinricus Pfau" is mentioned in a record from the town of Esslingen.

One notable individual with the PFAU surname was Johann Wilhelm Pfau (1669-1720), a German composer and organist who served as the Kapellmeister at the court of the Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach.

Another historical figure was Johann Baptist Pfau (1774-1836), a German painter and engraver who was known for his religious works and portraits. He was born in Nuremberg and studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna.

In the 19th century, Johann Nepomuk Pfau (1815-1868) was a prominent German Catholic theologian and philosopher. He served as a professor of philosophy at the University of Tübingen and was a member of the Bavarian Academy of Sciences.

The PFAU name can also be found in historical records from other German-speaking regions, such as Austria and Switzerland, indicating its spread across Central Europe during the Middle Ages and beyond.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Pfau

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Pfau.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Pfau was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Pfau has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Pfau was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Pfau, please contact us.

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