2000
#8,679
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,487
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.29
Rare Last name
Rembert
A French toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "bright raven."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,211 Americans carry the last name Rembert. That puts it at #8,594 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.23 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 81,395 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Rembert 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
4.2K
1 in 81,395
Census rank
#8,594
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,672 bearers of the surname Rembert in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.23 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8594th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Rembert, the largest self-reported group is Black at 77.6%. The next largest groups are White (14.5%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Rembert
The surname Rembert originates from Germany, first appearing in records during the 11th century. It is derived from the Germanic elements "ragin" meaning counsel or advice, and "berht" meaning bright or famous. The name likely referred to someone considered a wise advisor or counselor.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in the Codex Traditionum of the Reichenau Abbey, a medieval manuscript from around 1100. It mentions a "Rembertus de Burchusen" who was a landowner in the region. The spelling "Rembertus" was a common early variation.
In England, the Rembert name is found in the Domesday Book of 1086, spelled as "Rembald". This entry refers to a landholder in Lincolnshire. The name also appears in various other medieval records across Europe, with spellings like "Rembert", "Reimbert", and "Reinbert".
Several notable individuals bore the Rembert surname throughout history. Rembert of Torhout (c. 1090 - c. 1133) was a Flemish monk and hagiographer who wrote the Life of St. Boniface. Rembert of St. Gall (c. 850 - c. 909) was a Swiss monk and author of the Casus Sancti Galli, an important historical source on the Abbey of St. Gall.
In the 13th century, Rembert of Würzburg (c. 1200 - 1263) was a German priest and historian who wrote the Annals of Würzburg. Around the same time, Rembert Dodoens (1517 - 1585) was a Flemish physician and botanist known for his influential herbal Cruydt-Boeck.
The surname was also associated with several place names, like Rembert in Belgium and Remertshausen in Germany, reflecting its geographic spread over time. While not as common today, the Rembert name has deep historical roots across various European regions.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rembert
Among Census respondents with the surname Rembert, the largest self-reported group is Black at 77.6%. The next largest groups are White (14.5%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Rembert 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 Rembert surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American77.6% · 2,848
- White14.5% · 531
- Two or more races4.6% · 170
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 102
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 13
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Rembert
Rembert 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
#8,295
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,994
+507 bearers (+14.5%)
Per 100,000 1.35
Rank movement Up 384 places
2020
#8,594
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,672
-322 bearers (-8.1%)
Per 100,000 1.23
Rank movement Down 299 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,679 | 3,487 | 1.29 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,295 | 3,994 | 1.35 | +507 bearers (+14.5%) | Up 384 places |
| 2020 | #8,594 | 3,672 | 1.23 | -322 bearers (-8.1%) | Down 299 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 Rembert 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 | #8,295 | #8,594 | -3.6% |
| Count | 3,994 | 3,672 | -8.1% |
| Per 100K | 1.35 | 1.23 | -9.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Rembert bearers went from 3,994 to 3,672 (-8.1% change). The surname moved down 299 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,295 to #8,594.
FAQ
Rembert surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Rembert?
Name Census estimates that about 4,211 living Americans carry the surname Rembert. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 81,395 residents.
How common is Rembert?
Rembert ranks #8,594 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.23 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 3,672 people with the surname Rembert. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,211), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.23 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.23 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 Rembert.
Has Rembert become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Rembert went from 3,994 recorded bearers to 3,672. That is a decrease of 322 (-8.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,295 to #8,594.
What does the Census say about the background of Rembert?
Among Census respondents with the surname Rembert, the largest self-reported group is Black at 77.6%. The next largest groups are White (14.5%) and Two or More Races (4.6%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Rembert in the 2020 Census, accounting for 77.6% (2,848 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Rembert appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (77.6%), White (14.5%), Two or More Races (4.6%). 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 Rembert (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 Rembert mean?
A French toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "bright raven." 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 Rembert (1.23 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 Rembert?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans have the surname Rembert on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.