2000
#121,780
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 131
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Rittmiller
An occupational surname meaning someone who rode or worked with mills or millstones.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 135 Americans carry the last name Rittmiller. 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 Rittmiller 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 Rittmiller 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 Rittmiller, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Rittmiller
The surname RITTMILLER has its origins in Germany, likely emerging during the late Middle Ages or early Renaissance period. It is a compound name derived from the German words "Ritt" meaning "knight" or "rider," and "Müller" meaning "miller." This suggests that the name may have originally referred to a miller who served a knight or nobleman, or perhaps a miller who also worked as a horseman or messenger.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the town records of Rothenburg ob der Tauber, a well-preserved medieval town in Bavaria, Germany. In the year 1487, a certain Hans Rittmiller is mentioned as a landowner and businessman in the town's guild registry. This indicates that the name had already become established by the late 15th century.
The RITTMILLER name also appears in several other historical documents from various regions of Germany, such as the Bavarian State Archives in Munich, which contain records of a family of Rittmillers from the 16th century who were involved in the local brewing industry. Another notable early bearer of the name was Johann Rittmiller, a Lutheran theologian and author who lived in Nuremberg from 1554 to 1623.
In the 17th century, the RITTMILLER name can be found in the records of the Thirty Years' War, with several soldiers and military officers bearing the surname. One such individual was Captain Georg Rittmiller, who fought for the Protestant forces and was mentioned in the chronicles of the siege of Magdeburg in 1631.
As the name spread throughout Germany, variations in spelling and pronunciation emerged, such as "Rittmüller," "Rittmiller," and "Rittmüler." These variations can be found in various historical documents and records from different regions.
One of the more notable figures with the RITTMILLER surname was Johann Caspar Rittmiller, a German composer and organist who lived from 1678 to 1748. He was widely renowned for his church music and served as the organist at the St. Sebaldus Church in Nuremberg for over three decades.
Another individual of historical significance was Friedrich Rittmiller, a German philosopher and educator who lived from 1835 to 1897. He was a prominent figure in the field of pedagogy and authored several influential works on education and moral philosophy.
In the 19th century, the RITTMILLER name can be found among the records of German immigrants who settled in various parts of the United States and other countries, carrying the name with them as they established new lives abroad.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rittmiller
Among Census respondents with the surname Rittmiller, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Rittmiller 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 Rittmiller surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.1% · 111
- Two or more races3.4% · 4
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Rittmiller
Rittmiller 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
#133,863
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 126
-5 bearers (-3.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 12,083 places
2020
#143,511
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 118
-8 bearers (-6.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 9,648 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #121,780 | 131 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #133,863 | 126 | 0.04 | -5 bearers (-3.8%) | Down 12,083 places |
| 2020 | #143,511 | 118 | 0.04 | -8 bearers (-6.3%) | Down 9,648 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 Rittmiller 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 | #133,863 | #143,511 | -7.2% |
| Count | 126 | 118 | -6.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -1.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Rittmiller bearers went from 126 to 118 (-6.3% change). The surname moved down 9,648 positions in the national ranking, going from #133,863 to #143,511.
FAQ
Rittmiller surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Rittmiller?
Name Census estimates that about 135 living Americans carry the surname Rittmiller. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,538,921 residents.
How common is Rittmiller?
Rittmiller 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 Rittmiller. 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 Rittmiller.
Has Rittmiller become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Rittmiller went from 126 recorded bearers to 118. That is a decrease of 8 (-6.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #133,863 to #143,511.
What does the Census say about the background of Rittmiller?
Among Census respondents with the surname Rittmiller, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (2.5%). 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 Rittmiller in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.1% (111 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Rittmiller appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.1%), Two or More Races (3.4%), Hispanic (2.5%). 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 Rittmiller (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 Rittmiller mean?
An occupational surname meaning someone who rode or worked with mills or millstones. 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 Rittmiller (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 Rittmiller?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.