2000
#8,031
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,809
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.41
Rare Last name
Schall
A German occupational surname referring to a person who worked as a town crier or public announcer.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,114 Americans carry the last name Schall. That puts it at #8,772 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.20 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 83,314 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Schall 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
4.1K
1 in 83,314
Census rank
#8,772
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,588 bearers of the surname Schall in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.20 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8772nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Schall, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.7%) and Hispanic (2.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Schall
The surname Schall has its origins in Germany and dates back to the 12th century. It is derived from the Old High German word "scal," which means "loud" or "echoing." This suggests that the name may have originally been a nickname given to someone with a loud or booming voice.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Schall can be found in the records of the city of Cologne, where a person named Henricus Schal is mentioned in a document from 1189. In the following centuries, variations of the name, such as Schal, Schale, and Schall, began to appear in various regions of Germany, including Bavaria and Saxony.
During the 13th century, the name Schall was also found in some medieval manuscripts and records, such as the "Codex Diplomaticus Brandenburgensis," which contains a reference to a person named Conradus Schal in 1244.
In the 14th century, the name Schall gained prominence with the rise of a famous German family of that name. Johannes Schall von Bell (1285-1349), a nobleman and military commander, was a notable figure during this period. His descendants continued to use the name Schall and some of them held important positions in the Church and government.
Another significant bearer of the Schall surname was Johann Adam Schall von Bell (1592-1666), a German Jesuit missionary and astronomer who served at the court of the Shunzhi Emperor in China. He made important contributions to the study of astronomy and introduced Western scientific knowledge to China.
In the 18th century, Johann Friedrich Schall (1712-1790) was a notable German composer and organist who worked in Strasbourg. His works included church music and instrumental pieces.
During the 19th century, the Schall name was also associated with several notable figures, such as Friedrich Schall (1805-1882), a German physician and writer, and Karl Schall (1857-1923), a German architect and urban planner who designed several buildings in Berlin.
These are just a few examples of the many individuals throughout history who have borne the surname Schall, which has its roots in the German language and has been associated with various notable figures in fields such as military, religion, science, music, and architecture.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Schall
Among Census respondents with the surname Schall, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.7%) and Hispanic (2.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Schall 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 Schall surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.1% · 3,305
- Two or more races2.7% · 98
- Hispanic or Latino2.7% · 96
- Black or African American0.9% · 34
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 29
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 26
Timeline
Historical Census data for Schall
Schall 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
#8,679
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,786
-23 bearers (-0.6%)
Per 100,000 1.28
Rank movement Down 648 places
2020
#8,772
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,588
-198 bearers (-5.2%)
Per 100,000 1.20
Rank movement Down 93 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,031 | 3,809 | 1.41 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,679 | 3,786 | 1.28 | -23 bearers (-0.6%) | Down 648 places |
| 2020 | #8,772 | 3,588 | 1.20 | -198 bearers (-5.2%) | Down 93 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 Schall 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 | #8,679 | #8,772 | -1.1% |
| Count | 3,786 | 3,588 | -5.2% |
| Per 100K | 1.28 | 1.20 | -6.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Schall bearers went from 3,786 to 3,588 (-5.2% change). The surname moved down 93 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,679 to #8,772.
FAQ
Schall surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Schall?
Name Census estimates that about 4,114 living Americans carry the surname Schall. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 83,314 residents.
How common is Schall?
Schall ranks #8,772 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.20 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 3,588 people with the surname Schall. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,114), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.2 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.20 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 Schall.
Has Schall become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Schall went from 3,786 recorded bearers to 3,588. That is a decrease of 198 (-5.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,679 to #8,772.
What does the Census say about the background of Schall?
Among Census respondents with the surname Schall, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.7%) and Hispanic (2.7%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Schall in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.1% (3,305 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Schall appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.1%), Two or More Races (2.7%), Hispanic (2.7%). 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 Schall (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 Schall mean?
A German occupational surname referring to a person who worked as a town crier or public announcer. 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 Schall (1.20 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 last name Schall?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the surname Schall at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.