2000
#9,531
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,128
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.16
Rare Last name
Pulver
Derived from the German word for "powder," likely referring to an occupation involving gunpowder or grinding grain into flour.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,592 Americans carry the last name Pulver. That puts it at #9,854 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.05 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 95,422 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Pulver 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
3.6K
1 in 95,422
Census rank
#9,854
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,132 bearers of the surname Pulver in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.05 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9854th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Pulver, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.6%) and Two or More Races (3.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Pulver
The surname Pulver has its origins in Germany, tracing back to the 16th century. It is derived from the Middle High German word "pulver," which means "powder" or "dust." Originally, it was likely an occupational name for someone who worked with gunpowder or was involved in powder manufacturing.
The earliest recorded instances of the Pulver name can be found in various German regions, such as Bavaria and Saxony. Some of the earliest spellings include Pulver, Pulfer, and Pulwer. It is believed that the name was first introduced to North America in the 17th century by German immigrants.
One of the earliest known bearers of the Pulver name was Hans Pulver, a German gunsmith who lived in Augsburg in the late 16th century. Another notable figure was Johann Pulver, a German painter and engraver who lived in Nuremberg in the 17th century.
In the 18th century, Johannes Pulver (1733-1805) was a German theologian and author who wrote several religious works. During the same period, Wilhelm Pulver (1752-1826) was a German military officer who served in the Prussian army.
In the 19th century, one of the most prominent individuals with the Pulver surname was Johann Jakob Pulver (1801-1877), a Swiss politician and writer who served as the president of the Swiss Federal Council in 1854.
Another notable figure was Albert Pulver (1852-1923), a German industrialist and inventor who helped develop the first practical pneumatic tire for bicycles and automobiles. He founded the Pulver Tire Company in Germany in the late 19th century.
Other historical figures with the Pulver surname include Hermann Pulver (1863-1945), a German mathematician known for his contributions to number theory, and Fritz Pulver (1879-1950), a Swiss artist and sculptor who worked in a variety of mediums.
While the Pulver name has its roots in Germany, it has since spread to other parts of the world, including North America, where it was brought by German immigrants in the 17th and 18th centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Pulver
Among Census respondents with the surname Pulver, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.6%) and Two or More Races (3.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Pulver 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 Pulver surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.7% · 2,841
- Hispanic or Latino4.6% · 144
- Two or more races3.2% · 99
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 26
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 13
- Black or African American0.3% · 9
Timeline
Historical Census data for Pulver
Pulver 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
#10,125
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,183
+55 bearers (+1.8%)
Per 100,000 1.08
Rank movement Down 594 places
2020
#9,854
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,132
-51 bearers (-1.6%)
Per 100,000 1.05
Rank movement Up 271 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,531 | 3,128 | 1.16 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,125 | 3,183 | 1.08 | +55 bearers (+1.8%) | Down 594 places |
| 2020 | #9,854 | 3,132 | 1.05 | -51 bearers (-1.6%) | Up 271 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 Pulver 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 | #10,125 | #9,854 | 2.7% |
| Count | 3,183 | 3,132 | -1.6% |
| Per 100K | 1.08 | 1.05 | -3.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Pulver bearers went from 3,183 to 3,132 (-1.6% change). The surname moved up 271 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,125 to #9,854.
FAQ
Pulver surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Pulver?
Name Census estimates that about 3,592 living Americans carry the surname Pulver. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 95,422 residents.
How common is Pulver?
Pulver ranks #9,854 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.05 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 3,132 people with the surname Pulver. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,592), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.05 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.05 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Pulver.
Has Pulver become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Pulver went from 3,183 recorded bearers to 3,132. That is a decrease of 51 (-1.6%). In the national ranking it rose from #10,125 to #9,854.
What does the Census say about the background of Pulver?
Among Census respondents with the surname Pulver, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.6%) and Two or More Races (3.2%). 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 Pulver in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.7% (2,841 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Pulver appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.7%), Hispanic (4.6%), Two or More Races (3.2%). 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 Pulver (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 Pulver mean?
Derived from the German word for "powder," likely referring to an occupation involving gunpowder or grinding grain into flour. 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 Pulver (1.05 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 Americans have the surname Pulver?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.