2000
#8,185
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,728
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.38
Rare Last name
Rhine
A habitational surname referring to someone who lived near the River Rhine in Germany.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,174 Americans carry the last name Rhine. That puts it at #8,652 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.22 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 82,117 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Rhine 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 82,117
Census rank
#8,652
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,640 bearers of the surname Rhine in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.22 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8652nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Rhine, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.2%. The next largest groups are Black (9.1%) and Hispanic (3.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Rhine
The surname Rhine is of German origin and dates back to the medieval period. It is believed to have originated from the name of the famous Rhine River, which flows through several countries in Western Europe, including Germany, France, and the Netherlands. The Rhine River played a significant role in the economic and cultural development of the region, and it is likely that the name was initially given to someone who lived near or worked along the river.
In Germany, the surname Rhine was most commonly found in the regions along the Rhine River, particularly in the states of Baden-Württemberg, Rhineland-Palatinate, and North Rhine-Westphalia. The earliest recorded instances of the name can be traced back to the 13th and 14th centuries, when it appeared in various local records and documents.
One notable historical reference to the surname Rhine can be found in the Chronica Regia Coloniensis, a medieval chronicle written in the 13th century. This chronicle mentions a person named Johannes de Reno, which is believed to be an early variation of the surname Rhine.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Rhine was Johannes Rhine, a merchant who lived in the city of Cologne in the late 14th century. Another notable figure was Peter Rhine, a scholar and theologian who lived in the 15th century and served as a professor at the University of Heidelberg.
In the 16th century, the surname Rhine gained prominence with figures such as Balthasar Rhine, a German Renaissance artist known for his religious paintings and frescoes. He was born in 1528 and died in 1597.
During the 17th century, the surname was associated with several notable individuals, including Johann Friedrich Rhine, a German composer and organist who lived from 1625 to 1698. He is considered one of the most important composers of the North German Baroque era.
In the 18th century, one of the most influential figures with the surname Rhine was Johann Philipp Rhine, a German philosopher and theologian who lived from 1737 to 1810. He was a prominent figure in the Enlightenment movement and made significant contributions to the fields of ethics and moral philosophy.
The 19th century saw the emergence of several prominent individuals with the surname Rhine, including Heinrich Rhine, a German-American botanist and horticulturist who lived from 1822 to 1892. He is best known for his work on the cultivation of grapes and the development of new varieties of grapes for wine production.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rhine
Among Census respondents with the surname Rhine, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.2%. The next largest groups are Black (9.1%) and Hispanic (3.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Rhine 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 Rhine surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White82.2% · 2,991
- Black or African American9.1% · 331
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 129
- Two or more races3.4% · 125
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.1% · 39
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 25
Timeline
Historical Census data for Rhine
Rhine 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
#8,690
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,779
+51 bearers (+1.4%)
Per 100,000 1.28
Rank movement Down 505 places
2020
#8,652
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,640
-139 bearers (-3.7%)
Per 100,000 1.22
Rank movement Up 38 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,185 | 3,728 | 1.38 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,690 | 3,779 | 1.28 | +51 bearers (+1.4%) | Down 505 places |
| 2020 | #8,652 | 3,640 | 1.22 | -139 bearers (-3.7%) | Up 38 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 Rhine 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 | #8,690 | #8,652 | 0.4% |
| Count | 3,779 | 3,640 | -3.7% |
| Per 100K | 1.28 | 1.22 | -4.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Rhine bearers went from 3,779 to 3,640 (-3.7% change). The surname moved up 38 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,690 to #8,652.
FAQ
Rhine surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Rhine?
Name Census estimates that about 4,174 living Americans carry the surname Rhine. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 82,117 residents.
How common is Rhine?
Rhine ranks #8,652 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.22 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 3,640 people with the surname Rhine. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,174), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.22 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.22 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 Rhine.
Has Rhine become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Rhine went from 3,779 recorded bearers to 3,640. That is a decrease of 139 (-3.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #8,690 to #8,652.
What does the Census say about the background of Rhine?
Among Census respondents with the surname Rhine, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.2%. The next largest groups are Black (9.1%) and Hispanic (3.5%). 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 Rhine in the 2020 Census, accounting for 82.2% (2,991 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Rhine appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (82.2%), Black (9.1%), Hispanic (3.5%). 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 Rhine (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 Rhine mean?
A habitational surname referring to someone who lived near the River Rhine in Germany. 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 Rhine (1.22 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 surname Rhine?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.