2000
#147,095
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 103
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Ploense
A German surname adapted from the place name Plöne which refers to an inhabitant of that location.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 125 Americans carry the last name Ploense. That puts it at #150,205 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,742,035 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Ploense 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
125
1 in 2,742,035
Census rank
#150,205
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
109
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 109 bearers of the surname Ploense in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 150205th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Ploense, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.8%) and Two or More Races (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Ploense
The surname PLOENSE has its origins in the German language and can be traced back to the 16th century. It is believed to have originated from the northern regions of Germany, particularly in the areas around Hamburg and Bremen. The name may have derived from an older German word "ploen," which referred to a small body of water or a pond.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name PLOENSE can be found in the records of the town of Lübeck, dated 1573. Here, a merchant named Hans PLOENSE is mentioned as a trader of goods from the Hanseatic League. This suggests that the name was already well-established in the region during that time.
In the late 17th century, the name PLOENSE appears in the parish records of the town of Stade, located in Lower Saxony. A family with the surname PLOENSE is listed as landowners and farmers in the area. This indicates that the name had spread to different parts of northern Germany by this period.
The PLOENSE surname is also found in the records of the city of Bremen in the early 18th century. Here, a man named Johann PLOENSE is listed as a master craftsman and member of the local guild. This suggests that the name was associated with skilled trades and craftsmanship during that era.
One notable figure with the surname PLOENSE was Friedrich PLOENSE, a German philosopher and writer who lived from 1792 to 1868. He was born in the town of Celle and is known for his works on ethics and moral philosophy. Another individual of note was Luise PLOENSE, a pioneering educator who founded one of the first schools for girls in Hamburg in the mid-19th century.
In the 20th century, a prominent figure with the PLOENSE surname was Hans PLOENSE, a German naval officer who served during World War II. He was born in 1910 in Kiel and rose to the rank of Kapitän zur See (Captain at Sea) in the Kriegsmarine.
Other individuals with the surname PLOENSE include Gerhard PLOENSE, a German architect who designed several notable buildings in Berlin during the 1920s and 1930s, and Erich PLOENSE, a German chemist and researcher who made significant contributions to the field of organic chemistry in the mid-20th century.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ploense
Among Census respondents with the surname Ploense, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.8%) and Two or More Races (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Ploense 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 Ploense surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White95.4% · 104
- Hispanic or Latino1.8% · 2
- Two or more races1.8% · 2
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Ploense
Ploense 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
#160,975
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 100
-3 bearers (-2.9%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 13,880 places
2020
#150,205
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 109
+9 bearers (+9.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 10,770 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #147,095 | 103 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #160,975 | 100 | 0.03 | -3 bearers (-2.9%) | Down 13,880 places |
| 2020 | #150,205 | 109 | 0.04 | +9 bearers (+9.0%) | Up 10,770 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 Ploense 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 | #160,975 | #150,205 | 6.7% |
| Count | 100 | 109 | 9.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.04 | 21.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Ploense bearers went from 100 to 109 (+9.0% change). The surname moved up 10,770 positions in the national ranking, going from #160,975 to #150,205.
FAQ
Ploense surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Ploense?
Name Census estimates that about 125 living Americans carry the surname Ploense. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,742,035 residents.
How common is Ploense?
Ploense ranks #150,205 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 109 people with the surname Ploense. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (125), 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 Ploense.
Has Ploense become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Ploense went from 100 recorded bearers to 109. That is an increase of 9 (+9.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #160,975 to #150,205.
What does the Census say about the background of Ploense?
Among Census respondents with the surname Ploense, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.8%) and Two or More Races (1.8%). 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 Ploense in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.4% (104 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Ploense appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (95.4%), Hispanic (1.8%), Two or More Races (1.8%). 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 Ploense (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 Ploense mean?
A German surname adapted from the place name Plöne which refers to an inhabitant of that location. 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 Ploense (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 have the surname Ploense?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.