2000
#131,366
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 119
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Rhineberger
A locational surname originating from someone living near the Rhine River.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 124 Americans carry the last name Rhineberger. That puts it at #150,935 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,764,148 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Rhineberger 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
124
1 in 2,764,148
Census rank
#150,935
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
108
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 108 bearers of the surname Rhineberger in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 150935th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Rhineberger, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Two or More Races (1.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Rhineberger
The surname Rhineberger originates from Germany and can be traced back to the 12th century. It is a locational name, derived from the town of Rheinberg, located in the North Rhine-Westphalia region of Germany. The name is believed to have originated from the Old High German words "rīn" meaning "Rhine" and "berg" meaning "mountain" or "hill," referring to the town's location near the Rhine River and its elevated terrain.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Rhineberger can be found in a 13th-century document from the city of Cologne, where a person named "Johannes von Rheinberg" was mentioned. This suggests that the name was already well-established in the region by that time.
During the Middle Ages, the Rhineberger family played a significant role in the local history of the Rheinberg area. In the 14th century, records mention a Knight named Gerhard Rhineberger, who was a prominent figure in the region's nobility.
In the 16th century, the name appears in various church records and municipal documents from the town of Rheinberg and surrounding areas. One notable individual from this era was Johann Rhineberger (1523-1597), a Lutheran theologian and reformer who played a crucial role in the spread of Protestantism in the region.
Moving into the 17th century, the name Rhineberger gained recognition beyond the local region. Hans Rhineberger (1616-1679) was a respected composer and organist who served at the court of the Elector of Saxony in Dresden.
In the 19th century, Josef Rhineberger (1839-1901) was a renowned German composer and teacher who made significant contributions to the field of music. He served as a professor at the Munich Conservatory and his compositions, particularly his organ works, are widely recognized and performed to this day.
Another notable figure with the surname Rhineberger was Max Rhineberger (1877-1945), a German architect who designed several prominent buildings in Berlin and other cities during the early 20th century.
Throughout its history, the surname Rhineberger has maintained a strong connection to its geographical origins in the town of Rheinberg and the surrounding region along the Rhine River in Germany.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rhineberger
Among Census respondents with the surname Rhineberger, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Two or More Races (1.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Rhineberger 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 Rhineberger surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.4% · 102
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 4
- Two or more races1.9% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Rhineberger
Rhineberger 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
#148,347
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
-8 bearers (-6.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 16,981 places
2020
#150,935
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 108
-3 bearers (-2.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 2,588 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #131,366 | 119 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #148,347 | 111 | 0.04 | -8 bearers (-6.7%) | Down 16,981 places |
| 2020 | #150,935 | 108 | 0.04 | -3 bearers (-2.7%) | Down 2,588 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 Rhineberger 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 | #148,347 | #150,935 | -1.7% |
| Count | 111 | 108 | -2.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -9.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Rhineberger bearers went from 111 to 108 (-2.7% change). The surname moved down 2,588 positions in the national ranking, going from #148,347 to #150,935.
FAQ
Rhineberger surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Rhineberger?
Name Census estimates that about 124 living Americans carry the surname Rhineberger. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,764,148 residents.
How common is Rhineberger?
Rhineberger ranks #150,935 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 108 people with the surname Rhineberger. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (124), 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 Rhineberger.
Has Rhineberger become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Rhineberger went from 111 recorded bearers to 108. That is a decrease of 3 (-2.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #148,347 to #150,935.
What does the Census say about the background of Rhineberger?
Among Census respondents with the surname Rhineberger, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Two or More Races (1.9%). 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 Rhineberger in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.4% (102 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Rhineberger appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.4%), Hispanic (3.7%), Two or More Races (1.9%). 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 Rhineberger (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 Rhineberger mean?
A locational surname originating from someone living near the Rhine River. 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 Rhineberger (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 common is the surname Rhineberger?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans have the surname Rhineberger on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.