2010
#156,044
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 104
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Reitze
A German surname derived from the word "reiten" meaning "to ride" or "rider."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 132 Americans carry the last name Reitze. That puts it at #145,757 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,596,624 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Reitze 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
132
1 in 2,596,624
Census rank
#145,757
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
115
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 115 bearers of the surname Reitze in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 145757th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Reitze, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (13.9%) and Two or More Races (5.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Reitze
The surname REITZE originated in Germany. It is believed to have derived from the Low German word "reiten," which means "to ride." This suggests that the name may have been an occupational surname initially given to someone who worked as a rider or someone who provided horse-related services.
The earliest recorded instance of the REITZE surname dates back to the 16th century in the regions of Lower Saxony and Westphalia in northern Germany. The name may have also been spelled as "Reitze," "Reitzer," or "Reitzke" in its early forms.
One of the earliest known bearers of the REITZE name was Hans Reitze, a landowner and farmer who lived in the town of Dorfmark, near Lüneburg, in the late 16th century. Another early record mentions a Johann Reitze, a blacksmith from the village of Neustadt am Rübenberge, who was documented in the local parish registers in 1602.
In the 17th century, the REITZE surname appears in various official records and documents, such as tax rolls and land deeds. For instance, a Dietrich Reitze was listed as a landowner in the town of Burgwedel, near Hanover, in 1635.
A notable bearer of the REITZE name was Christoph Reitze, who was born in 1689 in the town of Hemmingen, near Hannover. He became a respected theologian and served as a pastor in several churches throughout the region.
Another individual of historical significance was Carl Friedrich Reitze, a German botanist and naturalist born in 1792 in the town of Salzwedel. He made significant contributions to the study of plant life and published several influential works on botany.
During the 19th century, the REITZE surname spread beyond Germany as some individuals immigrated to other parts of Europe and North America. One example is August Reitze, a German-born farmer who settled in Minnesota, United States, in the 1860s.
While the REITZE name is not as common as some other German surnames, it has a rich history and can be traced back to its origins as an occupational name in northern Germany several centuries ago.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Reitze
Among Census respondents with the surname Reitze, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (13.9%) and Two or More Races (5.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Reitze 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 Reitze surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White77.4% · 89
- Hispanic or Latino13.9% · 16
- Two or more races5.2% · 6
- Black or African American2.6% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Reitze
Reitze appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#145,757
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
+11 bearers (+10.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 10,287 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #156,044 | 104 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #145,757 | 115 | 0.04 | +11 bearers (+10.6%) | Up 10,287 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 Reitze 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 | #156,044 | #145,757 | 6.6% |
| Count | 104 | 115 | 10.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -3.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Reitze bearers went from 104 to 115 (+10.6% change). The surname moved up 10,287 positions in the national ranking, going from #156,044 to #145,757.
FAQ
Reitze surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Reitze?
Name Census estimates that about 132 living Americans carry the surname Reitze. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,596,624 residents.
How common is Reitze?
Reitze ranks #145,757 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 115 people with the surname Reitze. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (132), 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 Reitze.
Has Reitze become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Reitze went from 104 recorded bearers to 115. That is an increase of 11 (+10.6%). In the national ranking it rose from #156,044 to #145,757.
What does the Census say about the background of Reitze?
Among Census respondents with the surname Reitze, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (13.9%) and Two or More Races (5.2%). 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 Reitze in the 2020 Census, accounting for 77.4% (89 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Reitze appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (77.4%), Hispanic (13.9%), Two or More Races (5.2%). 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 Reitze (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 Reitze mean?
A German surname derived from the word "reiten" meaning "to ride" or "rider." 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 Reitze (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 are called Reitze?
Want to know how common the surname Reitze is? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.