2000
#10,797
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,712
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.01
Rare Last name
Schipper
An occupational surname referring to a skipper, shipmaster, or sea captain in Dutch and German.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,031 Americans carry the last name Schipper. That puts it at #11,401 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.88 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 113,083 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Schipper 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
3.0K
1 in 113,083
Census rank
#11,401
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,643 bearers of the surname Schipper in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.88 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11401st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Schipper, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Schipper
The surname SCHIPPER has its origins in the Netherlands, tracing back to the 16th century. It is derived from the Dutch word "schipper," meaning a skipper or ship's captain. This occupational name was likely given to someone whose profession involved navigating or commanding ships.
In the early 1600s, the SCHIPPER name appeared in various Dutch records and documents, such as the archives of Amsterdam and Rotterdam. One of the earliest known bearers of this surname was Jan Schipper, a merchant and ship owner who lived in Amsterdam in the late 16th century.
The SCHIPPER name has been associated with several notable individuals throughout history. One such figure was Willem Schipper (1628-1704), a Dutch Golden Age painter known for his seascapes and maritime scenes. Another prominent bearer of this name was Hendrik Schipper (1795-1867), a Dutch naval officer and explorer who charted parts of the East Indies archipelago.
In the 19th century, the SCHIPPER surname also found its way to other parts of Europe and the Americas due to Dutch emigration. One notable figure from this era was Cornelius Schipper (1836-1912), a Dutch-American farmer and businessman who established one of the first successful dairy farms in California.
Another individual of note was Jacobus Schipper (1865-1945), a Dutch linguist and scholar who made significant contributions to the study of Old English and Middle English literature. His seminal work, "A History of English Versification," published in 1910, remains an important reference in the field of English philology.
Closer to the present day, the SCHIPPER name has been carried by individuals such as Kristina Schipper (1926-2001), a German-born American pioneer in the field of dance therapy, and Peter Schipper (born 1939), a Dutch actor and theater director known for his experimental and avant-garde productions.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Schipper
Among Census respondents with the surname Schipper, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Schipper 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 Schipper surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.2% · 2,438
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 91
- Two or more races2.5% · 65
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.2% · 31
- Black or African American0.7% · 18
Timeline
Historical Census data for Schipper
Schipper 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
#10,772
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,961
+249 bearers (+9.2%)
Per 100,000 1.00
Rank movement Up 25 places
2020
#11,401
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,643
-318 bearers (-10.7%)
Per 100,000 0.88
Rank movement Down 629 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,797 | 2,712 | 1.01 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,772 | 2,961 | 1.00 | +249 bearers (+9.2%) | Up 25 places |
| 2020 | #11,401 | 2,643 | 0.88 | -318 bearers (-10.7%) | Down 629 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 Schipper 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 | #10,772 | #11,401 | -5.8% |
| Count | 2,961 | 2,643 | -10.7% |
| Per 100K | 1.00 | 0.88 | -11.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Schipper bearers went from 2,961 to 2,643 (-10.7% change). The surname moved down 629 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,772 to #11,401.
FAQ
Schipper surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Schipper?
Name Census estimates that about 3,031 living Americans carry the surname Schipper. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 113,083 residents.
How common is Schipper?
Schipper ranks #11,401 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.88 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 2,643 people with the surname Schipper. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,031), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.88 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.88 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 Schipper.
Has Schipper become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Schipper went from 2,961 recorded bearers to 2,643. That is a decrease of 318 (-10.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,772 to #11,401.
What does the Census say about the background of Schipper?
Among Census respondents with the surname Schipper, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (2.5%). 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 Schipper in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.2% (2,438 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Schipper appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.2%), Hispanic (3.4%), Two or More Races (2.5%). 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 Schipper (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 Schipper mean?
An occupational surname referring to a skipper, shipmaster, or sea captain in Dutch and German. 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 Schipper (0.88 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 Schipper?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.