2000
#9,213
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,256
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.21
Rare Last name
Rumph
Derived from a German nickname for a boisterous or quarrelsome person, from Middle High German "rumpf," meaning "riotous."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,507 Americans carry the last name Rumph. That puts it at #10,049 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.02 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 97,734 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Rumph 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
3.5K
1 in 97,734
Census rank
#10,049
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,058 bearers of the surname Rumph in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.02 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10049th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Rumph, the largest self-reported group is Black at 63.7%. The next largest groups are White (28.6%) and Two or More Races (3.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Rumph
The surname RUMPH is of German origin, with roots dating back to the 16th century. It is believed to have originated in the southern regions of Germany, particularly in the areas surrounding Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg.
The name RUMPH is derived from the Middle High German word "rumpf," which means "torso" or "trunk" of a body. This suggests that the name may have initially been a descriptive nickname for someone with a distinctive physical characteristic or build.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the RUMPH surname can be found in the Bavarian city of Augsburg, where a man named Hans Rumph was mentioned in a church register dated 1587. This document provides evidence of the name's presence in the region during the late 16th century.
In the 17th century, the RUMPH name appeared in various historical records across southern Germany. Notably, a Georg Rumph was born in the town of Ulm in 1632, and he later became a respected botanist and naturalist, known for his contributions to the study of plants in the Dutch East Indies.
The RUMPH surname also has connections to place names in Germany. For instance, there is a town called Rumpfheim in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate, which may have influenced the spelling and pronunciation of the name in that region.
Among notable individuals with the RUMPH surname throughout history, we can mention:
1. Johann Rumph (1528-1592), a German Protestant theologian and reformer.
2. Georg Eberhard Rumph (1627-1702), a German-Dutch botanist and merchant, known for his work on the flora of the Moluccan Islands.
3. Christoph Friedrich Rumph (1737-1813), a German philologist and educator.
4. Wilhelm Rumph (1786-1860), a German painter and engraver.
5. Friedrich Rumph (1855-1924), a German architect and urban planner.
These examples illustrate the diverse fields in which individuals with the RUMPH surname have made significant contributions over the centuries, further highlighting the historical significance of this German surname.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rumph
Among Census respondents with the surname Rumph, the largest self-reported group is Black at 63.7%. The next largest groups are White (28.6%) and Two or More Races (3.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Rumph 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 Rumph surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American63.7% · 1,949
- White28.6% · 874
- Two or more races3.7% · 114
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 104
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 13
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Rumph
Rumph 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
#10,019
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,218
-38 bearers (-1.2%)
Per 100,000 1.09
Rank movement Down 806 places
2020
#10,049
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,058
-160 bearers (-5.0%)
Per 100,000 1.02
Rank movement Down 30 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,213 | 3,256 | 1.21 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,019 | 3,218 | 1.09 | -38 bearers (-1.2%) | Down 806 places |
| 2020 | #10,049 | 3,058 | 1.02 | -160 bearers (-5.0%) | Down 30 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 Rumph 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 | #10,019 | #10,049 | -0.3% |
| Count | 3,218 | 3,058 | -5.0% |
| Per 100K | 1.09 | 1.02 | -6.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Rumph bearers went from 3,218 to 3,058 (-5.0% change). The surname moved down 30 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,019 to #10,049.
FAQ
Rumph surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Rumph?
Name Census estimates that about 3,507 living Americans carry the surname Rumph. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 97,734 residents.
How common is Rumph?
Rumph ranks #10,049 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.02 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 3,058 people with the surname Rumph. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,507), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.02 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.02 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 Rumph.
Has Rumph become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Rumph went from 3,218 recorded bearers to 3,058. That is a decrease of 160 (-5.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,019 to #10,049.
What does the Census say about the background of Rumph?
Among Census respondents with the surname Rumph, the largest self-reported group is Black at 63.7%. The next largest groups are White (28.6%) and Two or More Races (3.7%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Rumph in the 2020 Census, accounting for 63.7% (1,949 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Rumph appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (63.7%), White (28.6%), Two or More Races (3.7%). 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 Rumph (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 Rumph mean?
Derived from a German nickname for a boisterous or quarrelsome person, from Middle High German "rumpf," meaning "riotous." 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 Rumph (1.02 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 Rumph?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.