2000
#2,047
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 16,212
First available Census row
Per 100,000 6.01
Uncommon Last name
Rader
An occupational surname for a wheelwright, derived from the German word "Rad" meaning "wheel."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 17,686 Americans carry the last name Rader. That puts it at #2,304 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 5.16 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 19,380 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Rader 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
18K
1 in 19,380
Census rank
#2,304
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
5.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
15K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 15,423 bearers of the surname Rader in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 5.16 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2304th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Rader, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.0%) and Hispanic (3.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Rader
The surname Rader has its origins in Germany, and it first appeared around the 13th century. The name is derived from the German word "Rad," which means "wheel," and it likely referred to someone who was a wheelwright or worked with wheels in some capacity.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Rader can be found in the Bavarian town of Regensburg, where a merchant named Hans Rader was documented in the mid-14th century. The name also appeared in various German records and manuscripts from the same period, such as the Nuremberg Chronicles, which mentioned a family of Raders who were prominent citizens in the city.
In the 16th century, the Rader name spread to other parts of Europe, including the Netherlands and England. One notable figure was Jan Rader, a Dutch mathematician and astronomer who lived from 1563 to 1617. He made significant contributions to the field of astronomy and published several books on the subject.
Another prominent individual with the Rader surname was Johann Georg Rader, a German Jesuit priest and writer who lived from 1588 to 1662. He authored several religious works and was known for his expertise in Latin and Greek literature.
In the 18th century, a branch of the Rader family settled in the United States, where the name continued to spread. One of the earliest recorded examples of the name in America was Johann Rader, a German immigrant who arrived in Pennsylvania in the 1740s.
Throughout history, the Rader name has been associated with various occupations and professions, including wheelwrights, merchants, scholars, and religious figures. Some notable individuals with the Rader surname include:
1. Benjamin Rader (1757-1826), an American Revolutionary War soldier and pioneer who settled in Ohio.
2. Matthew Rader (1832-1909), a German-American businessman and politician who served as Mayor of Baltimore from 1895 to 1899.
3. William Rader (1865-1936), a British architect who designed several notable buildings in London and other parts of England.
4. Melvin Rader (1929-2016), an American philosopher and author who wrote extensively on the works of John Dewey and pragmatism.
5. Kelly Rader (born 1978), an American professional golfer who has won several tournaments on the LPGA Tour.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rader
Among Census respondents with the surname Rader, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.0%) and Hispanic (3.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Rader 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 Rader surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.3% · 13,770
- Two or more races4.0% · 611
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 578
- Black or African American1.4% · 222
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 139
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 103
Timeline
Historical Census data for Rader
Rader 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
#2,233
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 16,320
+108 bearers (+0.7%)
Per 100,000 5.53
Rank movement Down 186 places
2020
#2,304
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 15,423
-897 bearers (-5.5%)
Per 100,000 5.16
Rank movement Down 71 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,047 | 16,212 | 6.01 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,233 | 16,320 | 5.53 | +108 bearers (+0.7%) | Down 186 places |
| 2020 | #2,304 | 15,423 | 5.16 | -897 bearers (-5.5%) | Down 71 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 Rader 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 | #2,233 | #2,304 | -3.2% |
| Count | 16,320 | 15,423 | -5.5% |
| Per 100K | 5.53 | 5.16 | -6.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Rader bearers went from 16,320 to 15,423 (-5.5% change). The surname moved down 71 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,233 to #2,304.
FAQ
Rader surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Rader?
Name Census estimates that about 17,686 living Americans carry the surname Rader. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 19,380 residents.
How common is Rader?
Rader ranks #2,304 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 5.16 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 15,423 people with the surname Rader. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (17,686), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 5.16 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 5.16 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 Rader.
Has Rader become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Rader went from 16,320 recorded bearers to 15,423. That is a decrease of 897 (-5.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,233 to #2,304.
What does the Census say about the background of Rader?
Among Census respondents with the surname Rader, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.0%) and Hispanic (3.7%). 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 Rader in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.3% (13,770 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Rader appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.3%), Two or More Races (4.0%), Hispanic (3.7%). 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 Rader (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 Rader mean?
An occupational surname for a wheelwright, derived from the German word "Rad" meaning "wheel." 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 Rader (5.16 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 share the surname Rader?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.