2000
#10,478
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,811
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.04
Rare Last name
Richert
Derived from the German name "Richard," meaning "brave ruler," or referring to a person who was rich or wealthy.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,150 Americans carry the last name Richert. That puts it at #11,048 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.92 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 108,811 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Richert 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
3.1K
1 in 108,811
Census rank
#11,048
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,747 bearers of the surname Richert in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.92 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11048th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Richert, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (2.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Richert
The surname Richert has its origins in Germany, where it first appeared in the early 13th century. It is derived from the Germanic personal name Richard, which itself comes from the Old German words "ric" meaning power or rule, and "hart" meaning strong or hardy. The name essentially translates to "strong ruler" or "powerful leader."
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Richert surname can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus, a collection of medieval documents from the region of Saxony, where a certain Richert von Halberstadt is mentioned in the year 1235. This suggests that the name was already well-established in northern Germany by this time.
The Richert name also appears in various other historical records from the Middle Ages, such as the Liber Vitae, a medieval manuscript from the Abbey of Reichenau in present-day Baden-Württemberg, which lists a Richert among the monastery's benefactors in the late 12th century.
In the 14th century, the spelling variation "Richarte" is attested in the Dortmunder Bürgerbuch, a register of citizens in the city of Dortmund. This likely indicates the spread of the name to different regions of Germany during this period.
Notable individuals bearing the Richert surname throughout history include:
1. Christoph Richert (1587-1653), a German Protestant theologian and professor at the University of Rostock.
2. Johann Friedrich Richert (1743-1810), a German composer and organist from Halle.
3. Karl Friedrich Richert (1798-1872), a German jurist and politician who served as the Mayor of Berlin from 1858 to 1860.
4. Otto Richert (1858-1934), a German architect known for his designs in the Art Nouveau style, including the Berlin Friedrichstraße station.
5. Wilhelm Richert (1892-1971), a German artist and painter associated with the expressionist movement.
While the name Richert has its roots in Germany, it has since spread to other parts of Europe and the world, likely through migration and immigration patterns over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Richert
Among Census respondents with the surname Richert, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (2.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Richert 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 Richert surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.6% · 2,543
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 95
- Two or more races2.7% · 75
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 20
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 8
- Black or African American0.2% · 6
Timeline
Historical Census data for Richert
Richert 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
#10,942
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,910
+99 bearers (+3.5%)
Per 100,000 0.99
Rank movement Down 464 places
2020
#11,048
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,747
-163 bearers (-5.6%)
Per 100,000 0.92
Rank movement Down 106 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,478 | 2,811 | 1.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,942 | 2,910 | 0.99 | +99 bearers (+3.5%) | Down 464 places |
| 2020 | #11,048 | 2,747 | 0.92 | -163 bearers (-5.6%) | Down 106 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 Richert 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 | #10,942 | #11,048 | -1.0% |
| Count | 2,910 | 2,747 | -5.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.99 | 0.92 | -7.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Richert bearers went from 2,910 to 2,747 (-5.6% change). The surname moved down 106 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,942 to #11,048.
FAQ
Richert surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Richert?
Name Census estimates that about 3,150 living Americans carry the surname Richert. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 108,811 residents.
How common is Richert?
Richert ranks #11,048 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.92 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 2,747 people with the surname Richert. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,150), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.92 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.92 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 Richert.
Has Richert become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Richert went from 2,910 recorded bearers to 2,747. That is a decrease of 163 (-5.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,942 to #11,048.
What does the Census say about the background of Richert?
Among Census respondents with the surname Richert, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (2.7%). 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 Richert in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.6% (2,543 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Richert appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.6%), Hispanic (3.5%), Two or More Races (2.7%). 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 Richert (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 Richert mean?
Derived from the German name "Richard," meaning "brave ruler," or referring to a person who was rich or wealthy. 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 Richert (0.92 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 Richert?
For a quick modern take, check how many people have the surname Richert on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.