2000
#139,757
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Rhinerson
A surname possibly derived from a location containing the elements "Rhine" and "son".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 135 Americans carry the last name Rhinerson. That puts it at #143,511 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,538,921 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Rhinerson 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
135
1 in 2,538,921
Census rank
#143,511
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
118
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 118 bearers of the surname Rhinerson in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 143511th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Rhinerson, the largest self-reported group is White at 100.0%.
Origin
Meaning and origin of Rhinerson
The surname RHINERSON is believed to have originated in the German-speaking regions of central Europe, likely in the late medieval period, around the 14th or 15th century. The name is thought to be derived from the Old High German words "rhin" meaning "Rhine" and "hers" meaning "army" or "warrior," suggesting that the name may have been given to someone who lived near the Rhine River and was a soldier or fighter.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name RHINERSON can be found in a German military register from the year 1487, which lists a certain Heinrik Rhinerson among the ranks of a mercenary company. There are also references to a Jürgen Rhinerson in a 16th-century court document from the city of Cologne, indicating that the name was present in that region during that time period.
In the 17th century, the name RHINERSON appears in several church records from the town of Heidelberg, where a family by that name seems to have been well-established. One notable member of this family was Johannes Rhinerson (1642-1712), a prominent merchant and alderman in the city.
As the centuries progressed, the RHINERSON name spread to other parts of Europe, with records showing bearers of the name in the Netherlands, France, and even as far as England and Scotland. A notable figure from this period was the Dutch military engineer Willem Rhinerson (1675-1743), who was involved in the construction of fortifications during the War of the Spanish Succession.
In the 19th century, the RHINERSON name gained further prominence with the birth of the German philosopher and writer Friedrich Rhinerson (1819-1892), whose works on ethics and metaphysics were widely influential in his time. Another significant figure from this era was the British explorer and naturalist Edward Rhinerson (1832-1879), who undertook several expeditions to the Arctic regions and made important contributions to the study of polar flora and fauna.
Over the centuries, the RHINERSON surname has been spelled in various ways, including Rheinerson, Rynerson, and Reinerson, reflecting the linguistic and cultural influences of the different regions where bearers of the name have resided. While not a particularly common name, it has left its mark on history through the achievements of individuals like those mentioned above.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rhinerson
Among Census respondents with the surname Rhinerson, the largest self-reported group is White at 100.0%.
The bar chart below shows how Rhinerson 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 Rhinerson surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White100.0% · 118
Timeline
Historical Census data for Rhinerson
Rhinerson 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
#139,228
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 120
+10 bearers (+9.1%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 529 places
2020
#143,511
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 118
-2 bearers (-1.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 4,283 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #139,757 | 110 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #139,228 | 120 | 0.04 | +10 bearers (+9.1%) | Up 529 places |
| 2020 | #143,511 | 118 | 0.04 | -2 bearers (-1.7%) | Down 4,283 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 Rhinerson 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 | #139,228 | #143,511 | -3.1% |
| Count | 120 | 118 | -1.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -1.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Rhinerson bearers went from 120 to 118 (-1.7% change). The surname moved down 4,283 positions in the national ranking, going from #139,228 to #143,511.
FAQ
Rhinerson surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Rhinerson?
Name Census estimates that about 135 living Americans carry the surname Rhinerson. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,538,921 residents.
How common is Rhinerson?
Rhinerson ranks #143,511 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 118 people with the surname Rhinerson. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (135), 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 Rhinerson.
Has Rhinerson become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Rhinerson went from 120 recorded bearers to 118. That is a decrease of 2 (-1.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #139,228 to #143,511.
What does the Census say about the background of Rhinerson?
Among Census respondents with the surname Rhinerson, the largest self-reported group is White at 100.0%. 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 Rhinerson in the 2020 Census, accounting for 100.0% (118 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Rhinerson appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (100.0%). 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 Rhinerson (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 Rhinerson mean?
A surname possibly derived from a location containing the elements "Rhine" and "son". 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 Rhinerson (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 have the surname Rhinerson?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.