2000
#6,792
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,574
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.70
Rare Last name
Schram
A German and Dutch occupational surname referring to someone who works as a merchant or trader.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,578 Americans carry the last name Schram. That puts it at #7,960 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.34 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 74,870 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Schram 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
4.6K
1 in 74,870
Census rank
#7,960
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,992 bearers of the surname Schram in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.34 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7960th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Schram, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Schram
The surname Schram is of German origin, and it is believed to have originated in the late Middle Ages, around the 13th or 14th century. It is thought to be derived from the Middle High German word "schram," which means "scar" or "scratch." This suggests that the name may have been initially given as a nickname to someone who had a prominent scar or scratch on their body.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Schram can be found in the records of the town of Hesse, Germany, where a person named Johannes Schram was mentioned in a document dated 1397. Another early reference to the name comes from the town of Nuremberg, where a certain Heinrich Schram was listed in a tax record from 1436.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the Schram surname started to appear more frequently in various parts of Germany, particularly in the regions of Bavaria, Saxony, and Rhineland-Palatinate. It is possible that the name was also influenced by the German word "schramme," which means "a cut or incision," further reinforcing the connection to the physical feature that may have inspired the name.
One notable individual with the surname Schram was Johann Schram, a German painter who lived from 1628 to 1687. He was known for his religious paintings and worked primarily in the city of Nuremberg. Another person of interest was Johann Philipp Schram, a German jurist and legal scholar who lived from 1740 to 1813 and wrote several influential works on civil law.
In the 19th century, the Schram surname spread beyond Germany as emigration to other parts of Europe and the Americas increased. One example is August Schram, a German-American businessman and entrepreneur born in 1837, who established a successful brewery in Chicago, Illinois.
Another notable figure was Constantijn Schram, a Dutch journalist and writer who lived from 1879 to 1942. He was known for his work as a war correspondent and for his novels that explored social issues of his time.
As the Schram surname spread across different regions, it also underwent various spelling variations, such as Schramm, Schramme, and Schraml, reflecting the regional dialects and linguistic influences of different areas.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Schram
Among Census respondents with the surname Schram, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Schram 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 Schram surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.8% · 3,705
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 117
- Two or more races2.7% · 107
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 34
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 16
- Black or African American0.3% · 13
Timeline
Historical Census data for Schram
Schram 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
#7,205
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,634
+60 bearers (+1.3%)
Per 100,000 1.57
Rank movement Down 413 places
2020
#7,960
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,992
-642 bearers (-13.9%)
Per 100,000 1.34
Rank movement Down 755 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,792 | 4,574 | 1.70 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,205 | 4,634 | 1.57 | +60 bearers (+1.3%) | Down 413 places |
| 2020 | #7,960 | 3,992 | 1.34 | -642 bearers (-13.9%) | Down 755 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 Schram 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 | #7,205 | #7,960 | -10.5% |
| Count | 4,634 | 3,992 | -13.9% |
| Per 100K | 1.57 | 1.34 | -14.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Schram bearers went from 4,634 to 3,992 (-13.9% change). The surname moved down 755 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,205 to #7,960.
FAQ
Schram surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Schram?
Name Census estimates that about 4,578 living Americans carry the surname Schram. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 74,870 residents.
How common is Schram?
Schram ranks #7,960 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.34 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 3,992 people with the surname Schram. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,578), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.34 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.34 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 Schram.
Has Schram become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Schram went from 4,634 recorded bearers to 3,992. That is a decrease of 642 (-13.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,205 to #7,960.
What does the Census say about the background of Schram?
Among Census respondents with the surname Schram, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) 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 Schram in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.8% (3,705 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Schram appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.8%), Hispanic (2.9%), 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 Schram (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 Schram mean?
A German and Dutch occupational surname referring to someone who works as a merchant or trader. 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 Schram (1.34 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 Schram?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.