2000
#13,712
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,028
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.75
Rare Last name
Schiffer
An occupational surname referring to a boatman or sailor, derived from the German word "Schiffer" meaning "skipper."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,217 Americans carry the last name Schiffer. That puts it at #14,748 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.65 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 154,603 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Schiffer 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
2.2K
1 in 154,603
Census rank
#14,748
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,933 bearers of the surname Schiffer in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.65 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14748th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Schiffer, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.6%) and Two or More Races (3.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Schiffer
The surname Schiffer originates from Germany, tracing its roots back to the 13th century. It is derived from the Middle High German word "schiffer," meaning "boatman" or "sailor." This occupational name likely referred to an ancestor's profession as someone who operated or worked on boats, particularly on rivers or lakes.
The earliest known instances of the name Schiffer can be found in records from the regions of Bavaria and Saxony, where it was commonly used in towns and villages along major waterways. In the 14th century, the surname appears in the Nuremberg City Archives, suggesting its presence in that historic city.
One of the earliest documented individuals with the surname Schiffer was Hans Schiffer, a merchant from Augsburg, Bavaria, who lived in the late 15th century. Another notable figure was Johann Schiffer, a 16th-century Lutheran theologian and reformer from Saxony.
In the 17th century, the name Schiffer appeared in various records across central and eastern Germany, including in the town of Pölitz, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, where a family of boatmen bearing the name resided.
During the 18th century, the surname gained prominence in the region of Brandenburg, with several Schiffer families documented in the town of Wriezen. One notable individual from this era was Friedrich Schiffer (1720-1789), a merchant and landowner from Wriezen.
As the name spread across Germany, it also underwent variations in spelling, such as Schiefer, Schieffer, and Schifer, reflecting regional dialects and pronunciation differences.
Other historical figures bearing the surname Schiffer include Johann Adam Schiffer (1669-1742), a German composer and organist from Saxony, and Karl Schiffer (1812-1878), a Prussian military officer and politician from Brandenburg.
While the surname Schiffer is predominantly found in Germany, it has also been carried by individuals of German descent to other parts of the world through migration and emigration over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Schiffer
Among Census respondents with the surname Schiffer, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.6%) and Two or More Races (3.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Schiffer 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 Schiffer surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.4% · 1,747
- Hispanic or Latino4.6% · 88
- Two or more races3.2% · 62
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.1% · 22
- Black or African American0.4% · 8
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 6
Timeline
Historical Census data for Schiffer
Schiffer 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
#13,893
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,173
+145 bearers (+7.1%)
Per 100,000 0.74
Rank movement Down 181 places
2020
#14,748
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,933
-240 bearers (-11.0%)
Per 100,000 0.65
Rank movement Down 855 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,712 | 2,028 | 0.75 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,893 | 2,173 | 0.74 | +145 bearers (+7.1%) | Down 181 places |
| 2020 | #14,748 | 1,933 | 0.65 | -240 bearers (-11.0%) | Down 855 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 Schiffer 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 | #13,893 | #14,748 | -6.2% |
| Count | 2,173 | 1,933 | -11.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.74 | 0.65 | -12.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Schiffer bearers went from 2,173 to 1,933 (-11.0% change). The surname moved down 855 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,893 to #14,748.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Schiffer
FAQ
Schiffer surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Schiffer?
Name Census estimates that about 2,217 living Americans carry the surname Schiffer. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 154,603 residents.
How common is Schiffer?
Schiffer ranks #14,748 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.65 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 1,933 people with the surname Schiffer. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,217), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.65 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.65 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 Schiffer.
Has Schiffer become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Schiffer went from 2,173 recorded bearers to 1,933. That is a decrease of 240 (-11.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #13,893 to #14,748.
What does the Census say about the background of Schiffer?
Among Census respondents with the surname Schiffer, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.6%) and Two or More Races (3.2%). 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 Schiffer in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.4% (1,747 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Schiffer appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.4%), Hispanic (4.6%), Two or More Races (3.2%). 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 Schiffer (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 Schiffer mean?
An occupational surname referring to a boatman or sailor, derived from the German word "Schiffer" meaning "skipper." 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 Schiffer (0.65 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 Schiffer?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.