2000
#1,630
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 20,117
First available Census row
Per 100,000 7.46
Uncommon Last name
Schaffer
An occupational surname referring to a steward, treasurer, or manager of sheep.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 22,621 Americans carry the last name Schaffer. That puts it at #1,776 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 6.60 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 15,152 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Schaffer 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Schaffer with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
23K
1 in 15,152
Census rank
#1,776
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
6.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
20K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 19,727 bearers of the surname Schaffer in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 6.60 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1776th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Schaffer, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.6%. The next largest groups are Black (3.3%) and Two or More Races (3.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Schaffer
The surname Schaffer is of German origin, derived from the occupational name for a shepherd or sheep farmer. It is believed to have originated in the 14th century or earlier, from the Middle High German word "schaf" meaning sheep.
The name was particularly common in southern Germany, Switzerland, and parts of Austria, where sheep farming was a significant part of the local economy. Some of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in medieval records and documents from these regions.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Hans Schaffer, a shepherd from the village of Seefeld in the Bavarian Alps, who was mentioned in a land registry document from 1432. Another notable early example is Johann Schaffer, a wealthy landowner and sheep farmer from the Tyrol region of Austria, who was recorded in a local court document from 1487.
The name Schaffer also appears in various forms in historical records, such as Schaefer, Schäfer, and Schäffer, reflecting the regional variations in spelling and pronunciation. Some of these variations may have been influenced by local dialects or the personal preferences of individual scribes or record-keepers.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals with the surname Schaffer, including:
1. Johann Gottlieb Schaffer (1720-1795), a German naturalist and entomologist known for his work on insect classification.
2. Johann Zoffany (born Johannes Zauffely or Johann Schaffer, 1733-1810), a German-born English painter renowned for his portraits of famous figures in the late 18th century.
3. Catherine Schaffer (1839-1904), an American philanthropist and educator who founded the Schaffer Free Library in Orange, New Jersey.
4. Franz Xaver Schaffer (1876-1953), an Austrian painter and printmaker known for his landscapes and depictions of rural life.
5. Walter Schaffer (1912-1992), an American baseball player who played for the Philadelphia Athletics and the Boston Red Sox in the 1930s.
While the surname Schaffer has its roots in the German-speaking regions of Europe, it has since spread to various parts of the world due to migration and cultural exchange.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Schaffer
Among Census respondents with the surname Schaffer, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.6%. The next largest groups are Black (3.3%) and Two or More Races (3.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Schaffer 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 Schaffer surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.6% · 17,682
- Black or African American3.3% · 658
- Two or more races3.0% · 590
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 567
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 142
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 88
Timeline
Historical Census data for Schaffer
Schaffer 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
#1,738
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 20,614
+497 bearers (+2.5%)
Per 100,000 6.99
Rank movement Down 108 places
2020
#1,776
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 19,727
-887 bearers (-4.3%)
Per 100,000 6.60
Rank movement Down 38 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,630 | 20,117 | 7.46 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,738 | 20,614 | 6.99 | +497 bearers (+2.5%) | Down 108 places |
| 2020 | #1,776 | 19,727 | 6.60 | -887 bearers (-4.3%) | Down 38 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 Schaffer 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 | #1,738 | #1,776 | -2.2% |
| Count | 20,614 | 19,727 | -4.3% |
| Per 100K | 6.99 | 6.60 | -5.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Schaffer bearers went from 20,614 to 19,727 (-4.3% change). The surname moved down 38 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,738 to #1,776.
FAQ
Schaffer surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Schaffer?
Name Census estimates that about 22,621 living Americans carry the surname Schaffer. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 15,152 residents.
How common is Schaffer?
Schaffer ranks #1,776 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 6.60 per 100,000 residents, which is about 7 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 19,727 people with the surname Schaffer. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (22,621), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 6.6 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 6.60 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 7 of them to have the surname Schaffer.
Has Schaffer become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Schaffer went from 20,614 recorded bearers to 19,727. That is a decrease of 887 (-4.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,738 to #1,776.
What does the Census say about the background of Schaffer?
Among Census respondents with the surname Schaffer, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.6%. The next largest groups are Black (3.3%) and Two or More Races (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 Schaffer in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.6% (17,682 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Schaffer appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.6%), Black (3.3%), Two or More Races (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 Schaffer (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 Schaffer mean?
An occupational surname referring to a steward, treasurer, or manager of sheep. 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 Schaffer (6.60 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 Schaffer?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.