2000
#7,998
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,833
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.42
Rare Last name
Schiff
A German and Jewish occupational surname referring to a boatman or riverboat captain.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,273 Americans carry the last name Schiff. That puts it at #8,499 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.25 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 80,214 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Schiff 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 Schiff with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.3K
1 in 80,214
Census rank
#8,499
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,726 bearers of the surname Schiff in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.25 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8499th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Schiff, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (1.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of 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).
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Schiff
Among Census respondents with the surname Schiff, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (1.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Schiff 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 Schiff surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.1% · 3,505
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 103
- Two or more races1.9% · 71
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 28
- Black or African American0.4% · 16
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Schiff
Schiff 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
#8,297
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,993
+160 bearers (+4.2%)
Per 100,000 1.35
Rank movement Down 299 places
2020
#8,499
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,726
-267 bearers (-6.7%)
Per 100,000 1.25
Rank movement Down 202 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,998 | 3,833 | 1.42 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,297 | 3,993 | 1.35 | +160 bearers (+4.2%) | Down 299 places |
| 2020 | #8,499 | 3,726 | 1.25 | -267 bearers (-6.7%) | Down 202 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 Schiff 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 | #8,297 | #8,499 | -2.4% |
| Count | 3,993 | 3,726 | -6.7% |
| Per 100K | 1.35 | 1.25 | -7.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Schiff bearers went from 3,993 to 3,726 (-6.7% change). The surname moved down 202 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,297 to #8,499.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Schiff
FAQ
Schiff surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Schiff?
Name Census estimates that about 4,273 living Americans carry the surname Schiff. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 80,214 residents.
How common is Schiff?
Schiff ranks #8,499 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.25 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 3,726 people with the surname Schiff. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,273), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.25 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.25 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 Schiff.
Has Schiff become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Schiff went from 3,993 recorded bearers to 3,726. That is a decrease of 267 (-6.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,297 to #8,499.
What does the Census say about the background of Schiff?
Among Census respondents with the surname Schiff, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (1.9%). 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 Schiff in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.1% (3,505 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Schiff appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.1%), Hispanic (2.8%), Two or More Races (1.9%). 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 Schiff (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 Schiff mean?
A German and Jewish occupational surname referring to a boatman or riverboat captain. 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 Schiff (1.25 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 Schiff?
If you just want to know how many Americans have the surname Schiff, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.