2000
#121,058
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 132
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Pomraning
A placename referring to someone from Pomerania, a region in Northern Europe.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 136 Americans carry the last name Pomraning. That puts it at #142,788 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,520,252 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Pomraning 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
136
1 in 2,520,252
Census rank
#142,788
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
119
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 119 bearers of the surname Pomraning in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 142788th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Pomraning, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Pomraning
The surname "POMRANING" is believed to have originated in the region of Pomerania, a historical territory on the southern shores of the Baltic Sea that is now divided between Germany and Poland. The name likely emerged sometime during the Middle Ages, between the 5th and 15th centuries.
The name itself is thought to derive from the Old Prussian word "pomren," meaning "by the sea," or the Proto-Slavic word "pomořan," meaning "a dweller by the sea." This suggests that the original bearers of the name may have lived in coastal areas or settlements near the Baltic Sea.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the "Codex Diplomaticus Pomeraniae," a collection of historical documents from Pomerania dating back to the 13th century. The name appears in various spellings, such as "Pomraning," "Pomrening," and "Pomreninge."
In the 14th century, a nobleman named Nikolaus Pomraning was mentioned in the records of the Teutonic Knights, a Catholic military order that played a significant role in the northern Crusades. Unfortunately, no specific dates of birth or death are available for this individual.
Another notable bearer of the name was Johann Pomraning, a scholar and theologian who lived in the late 16th century. He was born in Stettin (now Szczecin, Poland) in 1554 and died in Greifswald, Germany, in 1618. Pomraning was a professor at the University of Greifswald and authored several works on theology and philosophy.
In the 17th century, a man named Hans Pomraning is recorded as having settled in the town of Kolberg (now Kołobrzeg, Poland) in 1647. He is believed to have been a merchant or trader, but little else is known about his life or occupation.
The name also appears in connection with various place names in the Pomeranian region, such as Pomraning (now Pomorzany, Poland), a village located near the city of Stargard. This suggests that the name may have been derived from or associated with specific locations in the area.
One of the more prominent bearers of the surname was Friedrich Pomraning, a German writer and journalist who lived from 1819 to 1891. He was born in Stettin and worked as an editor for several newspapers, including the "Stettiner Zeitung" and the "Berliner Revue."
While the surname "POMRANING" is relatively uncommon today, it holds a rich history rooted in the coastal regions of Pomerania and the linguistic traditions of the Baltic Sea area. The name has been carried by scholars, merchants, and writers over the centuries, reflecting the diverse backgrounds and experiences of those who bore it.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Pomraning
Among Census respondents with the surname Pomraning, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Pomraning 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 Pomraning surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White97.5% · 116
- Two or more races2.5% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Pomraning
Pomraning 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
#120,187
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 144
+12 bearers (+9.1%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Up 871 places
2020
#142,788
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 119
-25 bearers (-17.4%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 22,601 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #121,058 | 132 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #120,187 | 144 | 0.05 | +12 bearers (+9.1%) | Up 871 places |
| 2020 | #142,788 | 119 | 0.04 | -25 bearers (-17.4%) | Down 22,601 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 Pomraning 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 | #120,187 | #142,788 | -18.8% |
| Count | 144 | 119 | -17.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.04 | -20.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Pomraning bearers went from 144 to 119 (-17.4% change). The surname moved down 22,601 positions in the national ranking, going from #120,187 to #142,788.
FAQ
Pomraning surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Pomraning?
Name Census estimates that about 136 living Americans carry the surname Pomraning. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,520,252 residents.
How common is Pomraning?
Pomraning ranks #142,788 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 119 people with the surname Pomraning. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (136), 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 Pomraning.
Has Pomraning become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Pomraning went from 144 recorded bearers to 119. That is a decrease of 25 (-17.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #120,187 to #142,788.
What does the Census say about the background of Pomraning?
Among Census respondents with the surname Pomraning, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.5%). 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 Pomraning in the 2020 Census, accounting for 97.5% (116 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Pomraning appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (97.5%), Two or More Races (2.5%). 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 Pomraning (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 Pomraning mean?
A placename referring to someone from Pomerania, a region in Northern Europe. 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 Pomraning (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 common is the surname Pomraning?
You can see how many people have the surname Pomraning on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.