2000
#2,394
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 13,870
First available Census row
Per 100,000 5.14
Uncommon Last name
Pfeiffer
An occupational surname referring to a pipe or whistle player, derived from the German word "Pfeifer."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 15,484 Americans carry the last name Pfeiffer. That puts it at #2,609 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 4.52 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 22,136 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Pfeiffer 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Pfeiffer with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
15K
1 in 22,136
Census rank
#2,609
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
4.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
14K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 13,503 bearers of the surname Pfeiffer in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 4.52 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2609th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Pfeiffer, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.3%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Pfeiffer
The surname Pfeiffer originated in Germany and can be traced back to the Middle Ages. It is derived from the German word "Pfeifer," which means "piper" or "flute player." This suggests that the name was initially given as an occupational surname to musicians or entertainers who played the pipe or flute.
In the 13th century, the name Pfeiffer appeared in various German town records and documents. For instance, a man named Heinrich Pfeiffer was mentioned in the records of the city of Erfurt in 1283. Another early record from 1321 refers to a Konrad Pfeiffer in Nuremberg.
The Pfeiffer name can also be found in some of the oldest German manuscripts and chronicles. One notable example is the mention of a Pfeiffer family in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae, a collection of documents from the medieval Duchy of Saxony, dated around the 14th century.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, several individuals with the surname Pfeiffer gained recognition in various fields. One of the earliest was Johann Pfeiffer (1493-1520), a German theologian and reformer who supported Martin Luther's Protestant Reformation. Another notable figure was Augustin Pfeiffer (1640-1698), a German jurist and writer who authored several legal treatises.
In the 18th century, Johann Philipp Pfeiffer (1715-1788) was a German engraver and etcher known for his intricate landscape prints. Around the same time, Johann Gottlieb Pfeiffer (1726-1789) was a German botanist who made significant contributions to the study of tropical plants.
One of the most famous bearers of the Pfeiffer name was Ida Pfeiffer (1797-1858), an Austrian traveler and writer who became one of the first female explorers to circumnavigate the globe. Her published accounts of her journeys to various parts of the world, including the Middle East, Africa, and Asia, were widely read and celebrated during her lifetime.
As the name Pfeiffer spread across German-speaking regions, it also developed various regional spellings and variations, such as Pfeifer, Pfeyfer, and Pfeyffer. Some of these variations can be found in historical records from different parts of Germany, Switzerland, and Austria.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Pfeiffer
Among Census respondents with the surname Pfeiffer, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.3%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Pfeiffer 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 Pfeiffer surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.2% · 12,452
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 447
- Two or more races2.8% · 372
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 116
- Black or African American0.6% · 75
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 41
Timeline
Historical Census data for Pfeiffer
Pfeiffer 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
#2,601
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 13,851
-19 bearers (-0.1%)
Per 100,000 4.70
Rank movement Down 207 places
2020
#2,609
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 13,503
-348 bearers (-2.5%)
Per 100,000 4.52
Rank movement Down 8 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,394 | 13,870 | 5.14 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,601 | 13,851 | 4.70 | -19 bearers (-0.1%) | Down 207 places |
| 2020 | #2,609 | 13,503 | 4.52 | -348 bearers (-2.5%) | Down 8 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 Pfeiffer 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 | #2,601 | #2,609 | -0.3% |
| Count | 13,851 | 13,503 | -2.5% |
| Per 100K | 4.70 | 4.52 | -3.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Pfeiffer bearers went from 13,851 to 13,503 (-2.5% change). The surname moved down 8 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,601 to #2,609.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Pfeiffer
FAQ
Pfeiffer surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Pfeiffer?
Name Census estimates that about 15,484 living Americans carry the surname Pfeiffer. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 22,136 residents.
How common is Pfeiffer?
Pfeiffer ranks #2,609 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 4.52 per 100,000 residents, which is about 5 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 13,503 people with the surname Pfeiffer. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (15,484), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 4.52 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 4.52 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 5 of them to have the surname Pfeiffer.
Has Pfeiffer become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Pfeiffer went from 13,851 recorded bearers to 13,503. That is a decrease of 348 (-2.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,601 to #2,609.
What does the Census say about the background of Pfeiffer?
Among Census respondents with the surname Pfeiffer, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.3%) and Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Pfeiffer in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.2% (12,452 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Pfeiffer appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.2%), Hispanic (3.3%), Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Pfeiffer (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 Pfeiffer mean?
An occupational surname referring to a pipe or whistle player, derived from the German word "Pfeifer." 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 Pfeiffer (4.52 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 last name Pfeiffer?
See how many Americans have the surname Pfeiffer on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.