2000
#2,510
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 13,192
First available Census row
Per 100,000 4.89
Uncommon Last name
Rinehart
Derived from a German place name meaning "a wooded hill near the Rhine River."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 14,336 Americans carry the last name Rinehart. That puts it at #2,803 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 4.18 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 23,909 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Rinehart 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
14K
1 in 23,909
Census rank
#2,803
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
4.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
13K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 12,502 bearers of the surname Rinehart in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 4.18 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2803rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Rinehart, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.1%) and Hispanic (3.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Rinehart
The surname Rinehart is of German origin, derived from the German words "rein" meaning "pure" or "clean" and "hart" meaning "hardy" or "strong". It is believed to have originated as a descriptive surname referring to someone who was considered pure and strong in character or physical attributes.
The earliest recorded instances of the name can be traced back to the 16th century in various regions of Germany, particularly in the southern and central areas. One of the earliest known records of the name appears in the church records of the town of Mittelfranken in Bavaria, where a family by the name of Rinehart is mentioned in the year 1537.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the name spread to other parts of Europe as German settlers migrated to various regions. In the United States, the name Rinehart first appeared in the late 18th century with the arrival of German immigrants, particularly those from Pennsylvania and other areas with significant German populations.
One notable individual with the surname Rinehart was Johann Christian Rinehart, a German-American potter and entrepreneur born in 1770 in Hesse, Germany. He immigrated to the United States in the late 18th century and established a successful pottery business in Baltimore, Maryland, which became a prominent supplier of stoneware and ceramics in the early 19th century.
Another significant figure was Mary Roberts Rinehart (1876-1958), an American novelist and playwright who was often referred to as the "mother of the modern mystery novel". She was a prolific writer and is credited with popularizing the "had-I-but-known" mystery genre, where the central character looks back on events and realizes the clues that were missed.
In the 19th century, the name Rinehart was also associated with various places in the United States, such as Rinehart Creek in Oregon and Rinehart Knob in West Virginia, which were likely named after early settlers or landowners with the surname.
Other notable individuals with the surname Rinehart include William Henry Rinehart (1825-1874), an American sculptor known for his monumental works, and Robert Rinehart (1910-1976), an American actor and singer who appeared in numerous films and television shows during the mid-20th century.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rinehart
Among Census respondents with the surname Rinehart, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.1%) and Hispanic (3.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Rinehart 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 Rinehart surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.4% · 11,427
- Two or more races3.1% · 384
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 370
- Black or African American1.5% · 192
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 70
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 59
Timeline
Historical Census data for Rinehart
Rinehart 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
#2,688
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 13,392
+200 bearers (+1.5%)
Per 100,000 4.54
Rank movement Down 178 places
2020
#2,803
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 12,502
-890 bearers (-6.6%)
Per 100,000 4.18
Rank movement Down 115 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,510 | 13,192 | 4.89 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,688 | 13,392 | 4.54 | +200 bearers (+1.5%) | Down 178 places |
| 2020 | #2,803 | 12,502 | 4.18 | -890 bearers (-6.6%) | Down 115 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 Rinehart 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 | #2,688 | #2,803 | -4.3% |
| Count | 13,392 | 12,502 | -6.6% |
| Per 100K | 4.54 | 4.18 | -7.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Rinehart bearers went from 13,392 to 12,502 (-6.6% change). The surname moved down 115 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,688 to #2,803.
FAQ
Rinehart surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Rinehart?
Name Census estimates that about 14,336 living Americans carry the surname Rinehart. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 23,909 residents.
How common is Rinehart?
Rinehart ranks #2,803 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 4.18 per 100,000 residents, which is about 4 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 12,502 people with the surname Rinehart. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (14,336), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 4.18 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 4.18 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 4 of them to have the surname Rinehart.
Has Rinehart become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Rinehart went from 13,392 recorded bearers to 12,502. That is a decrease of 890 (-6.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,688 to #2,803.
What does the Census say about the background of Rinehart?
Among Census respondents with the surname Rinehart, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.1%) and Hispanic (3.0%). 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 Rinehart in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.4% (11,427 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Rinehart appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.4%), Two or More Races (3.1%), Hispanic (3.0%). 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 Rinehart (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 Rinehart mean?
Derived from a German place name meaning "a wooded hill 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 Rinehart (4.18 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 Rinehart?
See how many people have the surname Rinehart on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.