Find out how popular the last name Richter is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Richter.

Richter, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Richter surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Richter in America

Richter is the 1178th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Richter surname appeared 29,880 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 10 people would have the surname Richter.

We can also compare 2010 data for Richter to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Richter

The surname Richter originates from Germany and can be traced back to the Middle Ages. It is derived from the German word "Richter," which translates to "judge" in English. This occupational surname was initially given to those who served as judges or magistrates in their respective communities.

The earliest recorded instances of the name Richter can be found in various Germanic regions during the 13th and 14th centuries. In some areas, the name was also spelled as "Richtar" or "Richter." One of the earliest known records appears in a medieval manuscript from the city of Nuremberg, dated 1287, which mentions a certain "Hans Richter."

The Richter surname is also associated with several notable historical figures. One of the most prominent was Johann Richter, a German mathematician and astronomer born in 1537. He made significant contributions to the field of trigonometry and is known for his work on the calculation of sines.

Another influential individual with this surname was Johann Paul Friedrich Richter, a German novelist and satirist who lived from 1763 to 1825. He is renowned for his novel "Hesperus" and is often referred to by his pen name, "Jean Paul."

In the realm of music, Max Richter, a German-British composer born in 1966, has gained international acclaim for his contemporary classical works, including the album "Sleep" and his recompositions of Vivaldi's "Four Seasons."

The name Richter also appears in historical records related to various places and regions. For instance, the town of Richterswil in Switzerland is named after a family with the surname Richter, who were prominent landowners in the area during the Middle Ages.

Other notable individuals with the Richter surname include Johann Richter, a German painter and engraver from the 16th century, and Georg Richter, a German philosopher and pedagogue who lived in the 18th century and made significant contributions to the field of education.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Richter

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Richter.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Richter was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Richter has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Richter was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Richter, please contact us.

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