2000
#142,819
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Quednau
A toponymic surname originating from a town or place name.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 127 Americans carry the last name Quednau. That puts it at #148,665 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,698,853 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Quednau 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
127
1 in 2,698,853
Census rank
#148,665
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
111
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 111 bearers of the surname Quednau in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 148665th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Quednau, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.7%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Quednau
The surname QUEDNAU originates from Germany, with its earliest recorded examples dating back to the 16th century. The name is believed to be derived from the Old German word "quedde," which translates to "source" or "spring," suggesting that the name may have been given to families living near a natural water source.
One of the earliest known references to the QUEDNAU name can be found in the 1589 church records of the town of Greiffenberg, located in what is now western Poland but was historically part of the German state of Prussia. These records mention a Johann QUEDNAU, who was born around 1565 and worked as a miller in the area.
By the 17th century, the QUEDNAU name had spread to other regions of Germany, including the state of Saxony. In the 1657 tax records of the town of Annaberg, a Hans QUEDNAU is listed as a metalsmith and landowner.
Notable individuals with the QUEDNAU surname include Christoph QUEDNAU, a Prussian military officer who fought in the Napoleonic Wars and was awarded the Iron Cross for his service in the Battle of Leipzig in 1813. Another prominent figure was Wilhelm QUEDNAU (1832-1902), a German architect and urban planner who designed several prominent buildings in Berlin and other cities.
In the 19th century, the QUEDNAU name also gained recognition in the field of academia. Friedrich QUEDNAU (1845-1921) was a renowned German philologist and linguist who served as a professor at the University of Leipzig and made significant contributions to the study of ancient Greek and Latin texts.
Another notable individual was Anna QUEDNAU (1888-1972), a German sculptor and artist who was part of the Expressionist movement. Her works were exhibited in galleries across Europe and are now housed in various museums and private collections.
While the QUEDNAU surname has its roots in Germany, it has since spread to other parts of the world through emigration, particularly to the United States and Canada during the 19th and early 20th centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Quednau
Among Census respondents with the surname Quednau, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.7%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Quednau 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 Quednau surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.6% · 105
- Hispanic or Latino2.7% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.8% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Quednau
Quednau 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
#147,253
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
+5 bearers (+4.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 4,434 places
2020
#148,665
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
-1 bearers (-0.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 1,412 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #142,819 | 107 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #147,253 | 112 | 0.04 | +5 bearers (+4.7%) | Down 4,434 places |
| 2020 | #148,665 | 111 | 0.04 | -1 bearers (-0.9%) | Down 1,412 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 Quednau 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 | #147,253 | #148,665 | -1.0% |
| Count | 112 | 111 | -0.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -7.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Quednau bearers went from 112 to 111 (-0.9% change). The surname moved down 1,412 positions in the national ranking, going from #147,253 to #148,665.
FAQ
Quednau surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Quednau?
Name Census estimates that about 127 living Americans carry the surname Quednau. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,698,853 residents.
How common is Quednau?
Quednau ranks #148,665 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 111 people with the surname Quednau. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (127), 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 Quednau.
Has Quednau become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Quednau went from 112 recorded bearers to 111. That is a decrease of 1 (-0.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #147,253 to #148,665.
What does the Census say about the background of Quednau?
Among Census respondents with the surname Quednau, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.7%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (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 Quednau in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.6% (105 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Quednau appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.6%), Hispanic (2.7%), American Indian/Alaska Native (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 Quednau (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 Quednau mean?
A toponymic surname originating from a town or place name. 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 Quednau (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 last name Quednau?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people are called Quednau at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.