2000
#10,085
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,946
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.09
Rare Last name
Reimers
One who comes from a place called Reime or Reim, likely derived from a German topographic name.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,387 Americans carry the last name Reimers. That puts it at #10,371 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.99 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 101,197 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Reimers 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
3.4K
1 in 101,197
Census rank
#10,371
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,954 bearers of the surname Reimers in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.99 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10371st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Reimers, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Reimers
The surname REIMERS has its origins in Germany, where it first appeared in the medieval period. It is believed to be derived from the Germanic word "reim," which means "rhyme" or "verse," suggesting that the name may have been associated with poets or minstrels.
One of the earliest known references to the name REIMERS can be found in the records of the city of Hamburg, dating back to the 14th century. The name was also present in other regions of northern Germany, such as Schleswig-Holstein and Lower Saxony.
In the 16th century, a notable figure bearing the REIMERS surname was Hans Reimers, a Lutheran minister and theologian born in Lübeck in 1520. He played a significant role in the Reformation movement and was a prominent figure in the city's religious and intellectual circles.
During the 17th century, the name REIMERS appeared in various town and village records throughout northern Germany. One such example is Johann Reimers, born in 1634 in the town of Oldenburg, who was a respected merchant and trader.
The 18th century saw the rise of a prominent REIMERS family in the city of Bremen. Christian Reimers (1734-1803) was a wealthy shipbuilder and industrialist whose business contributed significantly to the city's economic growth.
In the 19th century, the REIMERS name spread to other parts of Europe and beyond. One notable individual was Heinrich Reimers (1823-1898), a German-American journalist and author who emigrated to the United States in the 1840s and became a prominent figure in the German-American community.
Another notable figure was Karl Reimers (1856-1924), a German artist and painter who was part of the Worpswede artist colony in northern Germany. His works captured the rural landscapes and daily life of the region.
As the name REIMERS continued to spread, it also found its way to other parts of the world through emigration. For example, in the late 19th century, a REIMERS family settled in South Africa, where their descendants continued to carry on the surname.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Reimers
Among Census respondents with the surname Reimers, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Reimers 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 Reimers surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.2% · 2,606
- Hispanic or Latino4.6% · 135
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.8% · 84
- Two or more races2.7% · 79
- Black or African American1.4% · 40
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Reimers
Reimers 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
#9,698
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,345
+399 bearers (+13.5%)
Per 100,000 1.13
Rank movement Up 387 places
2020
#10,371
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,954
-391 bearers (-11.7%)
Per 100,000 0.99
Rank movement Down 673 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,085 | 2,946 | 1.09 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #9,698 | 3,345 | 1.13 | +399 bearers (+13.5%) | Up 387 places |
| 2020 | #10,371 | 2,954 | 0.99 | -391 bearers (-11.7%) | Down 673 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 Reimers 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 | #9,698 | #10,371 | -6.9% |
| Count | 3,345 | 2,954 | -11.7% |
| Per 100K | 1.13 | 0.99 | -12.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Reimers bearers went from 3,345 to 2,954 (-11.7% change). The surname moved down 673 positions in the national ranking, going from #9,698 to #10,371.
FAQ
Reimers surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Reimers?
Name Census estimates that about 3,387 living Americans carry the surname Reimers. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 101,197 residents.
How common is Reimers?
Reimers ranks #10,371 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.99 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 2,954 people with the surname Reimers. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,387), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.99 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.99 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 Reimers.
Has Reimers become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Reimers went from 3,345 recorded bearers to 2,954. That is a decrease of 391 (-11.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #9,698 to #10,371.
What does the Census say about the background of Reimers?
Among Census respondents with the surname Reimers, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.8%). 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 Reimers in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.2% (2,606 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Reimers appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.2%), Hispanic (4.6%), Asian/Pacific Islander (2.8%). 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 Reimers (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 Reimers mean?
One who comes from a place called Reime or Reim, likely derived from a German topographic 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 Reimers (0.99 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 Reimers?
Want to know how many people have the surname Reimers? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.