Find out how popular the last name Schiff is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Schiff.

Schiff, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Schiff surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Schiff in America

Schiff is the 8297th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Schiff surname appeared 3,993 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Schiff.

We can also compare 2010 data for Schiff to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Schiff

The surname Schiff originated in Germany and can be traced back to the Middle Ages. It is derived from the German word "Schiff," which means "ship." The name was likely given to someone who worked on ships or lived near a port or waterway.

In the 13th century, the name Schiff appeared in various records and documents from the region that is now modern-day Germany. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name was in the town of Mainz, where a man named Johannes Schiff was mentioned in a legal document dated 1276.

The Schiff family was prominent in the city of Hamburg, where they were involved in maritime trade and commerce. In the 16th century, a wealthy merchant named Heinrich Schiff was a respected figure in the city's business community.

During the 17th century, the name Schiff appeared in various regions of Germany, including Bavaria, Saxony, and Rhineland. One notable figure from this time was Johann Schiff, a Lutheran theologian born in Nuremberg in 1624.

In the 18th century, the Schiff family had a presence in the city of Frankfurt, where they were involved in the banking and finance industry. Johann Philipp Schiff, born in 1720, was a prominent banker and financier in the city.

As the name Schiff spread across Germany, it also found its way to other parts of Europe. In the 19th century, there were Schiff families living in Austria, Switzerland, and even as far as Russia. One famous bearer of the name was the Austrian composer Franz Schiff, born in Vienna in 1819.

Throughout history, the Schiff surname has been associated with various professions, including merchants, bankers, academics, and artists. Notable individuals with the surname include the American political scientist Walter Schiff (1901-1984), the German-born American publisher Jacob Schiff (1847-1920), and the English actor and director Andrew Schiff (born 1969).

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Schiff

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Schiff.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Schiff was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Schiff has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Schiff was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Schiff, please contact us.

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