2000
#13,421
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,081
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.77
Rare Last name
Schoenberger
A German habitational surname referring to someone from a place called Schönberg, meaning "beautiful mountain" or "lovely hill."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,197 Americans carry the last name Schoenberger. That puts it at #14,846 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.64 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 156,010 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Schoenberger 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 156,010
Census rank
#14,846
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,916 bearers of the surname Schoenberger in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.64 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14846th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Schoenberger, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.3%) and Two or More Races (2.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Schoenberger
The surname Schoenberger has its origins in Germany, where it first appeared in the 16th century. The name is derived from the German words "schön," meaning beautiful, and "Berg," meaning mountain or hill. It is believed to have been given to someone who lived near a picturesque hill or mountain range.
The earliest known record of the name is found in the town of Schoenberg in Bavaria, where a family with the surname Schoenberger is mentioned in a church register from 1587. This suggests that the name may have originated from this particular location, which was likely named for its scenic surroundings.
In the 17th and 18th centuries, the name can be found in various regions of Germany, including Saxony, Prussia, and the Rhineland. During this time, variations of the spelling included Schönberger, Schoenburger, and Schonberger.
One notable bearer of the name was Johann Schoenberger (1619-1673), a German theologian and author who served as a professor at the University of Strasbourg. Another was Friedrich Schoenberger (1768-1841), a Prussian military officer who fought in the Napoleonic Wars.
As Germans began immigrating to other parts of Europe and the Americas in the 19th century, the name Schoenberger spread to new regions. In the United States, one of the earliest recorded instances was Johann Schoenberger, who arrived in Philadelphia from Germany in 1804.
Other notable individuals with this surname include:
1. Karl Schoenberger (1858-1924), an Austrian artist and painter known for his landscapes and portraits.
2. Walter Schoenberger (1899-1976), a German-American author and journalist who wrote several books on World War II.
3. Ingrid Schoenberger (1935-2022), a German-born American actress and theater director who co-founded the New York Shakespeare Festival.
4. Gustave Schoenberger (1915-2005), a French-American scientist and inventor who developed the first successful artificial kidney machine.
5. Elise Schoenberger (born 1960), an American economic geographer and professor who has written extensively on globalization and economic restructuring.
While the surname Schoenberger is not among the most common in the world, it has a rich history spanning several centuries and can be found in various parts of Europe, North America, and beyond.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Schoenberger
Among Census respondents with the surname Schoenberger, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.3%) and Two or More Races (2.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Schoenberger 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 Schoenberger surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.6% · 1,774
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 64
- Two or more races2.7% · 51
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 19
- Black or African American0.3% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Schoenberger
Schoenberger 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
#14,082
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,136
+55 bearers (+2.6%)
Per 100,000 0.72
Rank movement Down 661 places
2020
#14,846
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,916
-220 bearers (-10.3%)
Per 100,000 0.64
Rank movement Down 764 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,421 | 2,081 | 0.77 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #14,082 | 2,136 | 0.72 | +55 bearers (+2.6%) | Down 661 places |
| 2020 | #14,846 | 1,916 | 0.64 | -220 bearers (-10.3%) | Down 764 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 Schoenberger 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 | #14,082 | #14,846 | -5.4% |
| Count | 2,136 | 1,916 | -10.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.72 | 0.64 | -11.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Schoenberger bearers went from 2,136 to 1,916 (-10.3% change). The surname moved down 764 positions in the national ranking, going from #14,082 to #14,846.
FAQ
Schoenberger surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Schoenberger?
Name Census estimates that about 2,197 living Americans carry the surname Schoenberger. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 156,010 residents.
How common is Schoenberger?
Schoenberger ranks #14,846 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.64 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 1,916 people with the surname Schoenberger. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,197), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.64 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.64 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 Schoenberger.
Has Schoenberger become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Schoenberger went from 2,136 recorded bearers to 1,916. That is a decrease of 220 (-10.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #14,082 to #14,846.
What does the Census say about the background of Schoenberger?
Among Census respondents with the surname Schoenberger, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.3%) and Two or More Races (2.7%). 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 Schoenberger in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.6% (1,774 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Schoenberger appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.6%), Hispanic (3.3%), Two or More Races (2.7%). 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 Schoenberger (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 Schoenberger mean?
A German habitational surname referring to someone from a place called Schönberg, meaning "beautiful mountain" or "lovely hill." 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 Schoenberger (0.64 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 Schoenberger?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the surname Schoenberger at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.