2000
#12,206
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,340
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.87
Rare Last name
Shaeffer
A German occupational surname referring to a shepherd or sheep herder.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,607 Americans carry the last name Shaeffer. That puts it at #12,925 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.76 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 131,475 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Shaeffer 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
2.6K
1 in 131,475
Census rank
#12,925
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,273 bearers of the surname Shaeffer in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.76 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12925th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Shaeffer, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Shaeffer
The surname Shaeffer is of German origin and can be traced back to the late Middle Ages. It is derived from the German occupational name "Schäfer," which means "shepherd." The earliest recorded instances of this surname date back to the 14th century in various regions of present-day Germany.
In some areas, the name was also spelled as "Schäffer" or "Scheffer," reflecting regional variations in pronunciation and spelling conventions. These alternative spellings were particularly common in regions like Bavaria and Saxony.
One of the earliest known references to the Shaeffer name can be found in a 14th-century manuscript from the city of Nuremberg, which mentions a certain "Hans Schäfer" as a resident of the city.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, as German-speaking communities migrated to other parts of Europe and later to the Americas, the Shaeffer name spread to different regions. For instance, Johann Shaeffer, born in 1621 in Heidelberg, was one of the earliest known Shaeffers to settle in the American colonies, arriving in Pennsylvania in the late 17th century.
Another notable individual with this surname was Johann Wilhelm Shaeffer, a German astronomer and mathematician born in 1718 in Ingolstadt, who made significant contributions to the study of sunspots and solar observation.
In the 19th century, the Shaeffer name gained prominence in the United States, with several individuals making their mark in various fields. One such individual was Jacob Shaeffer, born in 1826 in Pennsylvania, who was a prominent businessman and philanthropist in the city of Philadelphia.
Another notable figure was George Shaeffer, born in 1854 in Ohio, who served as a Congressman and played an important role in the development of the steel industry in the United States.
The Shaeffer surname has also been associated with several place names, such as the village of Schäfferhof in Bavaria, which derived its name from the occupation of shepherding.
Throughout history, the Shaeffer name has been carried by individuals from various walks of life, including farmers, artisans, scholars, and entrepreneurs, reflecting the diverse backgrounds and contributions of those bearing this surname.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Shaeffer
Among Census respondents with the surname Shaeffer, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Shaeffer 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 Shaeffer surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.8% · 2,086
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 77
- Two or more races2.6% · 59
- Black or African American1.1% · 26
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 17
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Shaeffer
Shaeffer 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
#12,944
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,373
+33 bearers (+1.4%)
Per 100,000 0.80
Rank movement Down 738 places
2020
#12,925
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,273
-100 bearers (-4.2%)
Per 100,000 0.76
Rank movement Up 19 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,206 | 2,340 | 0.87 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,944 | 2,373 | 0.80 | +33 bearers (+1.4%) | Down 738 places |
| 2020 | #12,925 | 2,273 | 0.76 | -100 bearers (-4.2%) | Up 19 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 Shaeffer 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 | #12,944 | #12,925 | 0.1% |
| Count | 2,373 | 2,273 | -4.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.80 | 0.76 | -4.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Shaeffer bearers went from 2,373 to 2,273 (-4.2% change). The surname moved up 19 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,944 to #12,925.
FAQ
Shaeffer surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Shaeffer?
Name Census estimates that about 2,607 living Americans carry the surname Shaeffer. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 131,475 residents.
How common is Shaeffer?
Shaeffer ranks #12,925 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.76 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 2,273 people with the surname Shaeffer. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,607), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.76 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.76 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 Shaeffer.
Has Shaeffer become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Shaeffer went from 2,373 recorded bearers to 2,273. That is a decrease of 100 (-4.2%). In the national ranking it rose from #12,944 to #12,925.
What does the Census say about the background of Shaeffer?
Among Census respondents with the surname Shaeffer, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (2.6%). 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 Shaeffer in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.8% (2,086 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Shaeffer appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.8%), Hispanic (3.4%), Two or More Races (2.6%). 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 Shaeffer (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 Shaeffer mean?
A German occupational surname referring to a shepherd or sheep herder. 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 Shaeffer (0.76 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 Shaeffer?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.