2010
#160,975
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 100
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.03
Very Rare Last name
Schellack
An occupational surname referring to a worker in the shellac industry.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 124 Americans carry the last name Schellack. That puts it at #150,935 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,764,148 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Schellack 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
124
1 in 2,764,148
Census rank
#150,935
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
108
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 108 bearers of the surname Schellack in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 150935th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Schellack, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.6%) and Hispanic (4.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Schellack
The surname "SCHELLACK" has its origins in Germany. It is believed to have originated in the region of Saxony during the medieval period, around the 12th or 13th century. The name is derived from an old German word "schellach," which means "shelly" or "scaly," possibly referring to the occupation of a person who worked with shells or scales.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name "SCHELLACK" can be found in the town records of Meissen, Saxony, from the year 1387, where a person named Hans Schellack is mentioned as a resident. This suggests that the name was already well-established in the region by the late 14th century.
In the 15th century, the name appears in the records of the city of Nuremberg, where a certain Johann Schellack is listed as a guild member in 1462. This indicates that the name had spread beyond its original region and was present in other parts of Germany by this time.
During the 16th century, the name "SCHELLACK" can be found in various records across different German states. For example, in 1523, a man named Peter Schellack is mentioned in the city archives of Lübeck, while in 1587, a certain Hans Schellack is recorded as a landowner in the village of Frankenhausen, Thuringia.
One notable individual with the surname "SCHELLACK" was Johann Christoph Schellack (1745-1822), a German composer and organist who was active in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. He served as the court organist in Rudolstadt and composed numerous works for organ and other instruments.
Another individual worth mentioning is Carl August Schellack (1807-1888), a German painter and engraver known for his landscapes and architectural scenes. He was born in Dresden and studied at the Dresden Academy of Fine Arts.
In the 19th century, the name "SCHELLACK" can be found in various places across Germany, including the cities of Berlin, Leipzig, and Hamburg. One notable figure from this period was Wilhelm Schellack (1841-1901), a German politician and lawyer who served as a member of the Reichstag (the German parliament) from 1884 to 1893.
Moving into the 20th century, a prominent individual with the surname "SCHELLACK" was Hans Schellack (1891-1963), a German architect who was involved in the design of several notable buildings in Berlin, including the Deutschlandhalle and the Kino Delphi.
Another noteworthy person with this surname was Erich Schellack (1914-2002), a German military officer who served in the Luftwaffe during World War II and later became a successful businessman in post-war West Germany.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Schellack
Among Census respondents with the surname Schellack, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.6%) and Hispanic (4.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Schellack 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 Schellack surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White85.2% · 92
- Two or more races5.6% · 6
- Hispanic or Latino4.6% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander4.6% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Schellack
Schellack appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#150,935
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 108
+8 bearers (+8.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 10,040 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #160,975 | 100 | 0.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #150,935 | 108 | 0.04 | +8 bearers (+8.0%) | Up 10,040 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 Schellack 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 | #160,975 | #150,935 | 6.2% |
| Count | 100 | 108 | 8.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.04 | 20.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Schellack bearers went from 100 to 108 (+8.0% change). The surname moved up 10,040 positions in the national ranking, going from #160,975 to #150,935.
FAQ
Schellack surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Schellack?
Name Census estimates that about 124 living Americans carry the surname Schellack. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,764,148 residents.
How common is Schellack?
Schellack ranks #150,935 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 108 people with the surname Schellack. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (124), 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 Schellack.
Has Schellack become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Schellack went from 100 recorded bearers to 108. That is an increase of 8 (+8.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #160,975 to #150,935.
What does the Census say about the background of Schellack?
Among Census respondents with the surname Schellack, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.6%) and Hispanic (4.6%). 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 Schellack in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.2% (92 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Schellack appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (85.2%), Two or More Races (5.6%), Hispanic (4.6%). 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 Schellack (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 Schellack mean?
An occupational surname referring to a worker in the shellac industry. 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 Schellack (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 Schellack?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.