2000
#130,443
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 120
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Shellenberg
A habitational name derived from a place with a ridge or hill.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 114 Americans carry the last name Shellenberg. That puts it at #156,005 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 3,006,617 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Shellenberg 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
114
1 in 3,006,617
Census rank
#156,005
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
99
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 99 bearers of the surname Shellenberg in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 156005th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Shellenberg, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.0%) and Two or More Races (2.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Shellenberg
The surname SHELLENBERG originated in Germany during the 13th century. It is derived from the Old German words "schelle" meaning bell and "berg" meaning mountain or hill, indicating that the name likely referred to someone who lived near a bell tower or church on a hill.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name SHELLENBERG can be found in the Hirsau Codex, a medieval manuscript from the Hirsau Abbey in the Black Forest region of Germany, dated around 1275. The codex mentions a "Johannes Shellenberger" who was a scribe and illuminator of manuscripts.
In the 14th century, the name appears in various records from the town of Schellenberg, located in the Bavarian Alps near the Austrian border. It is believed that the name may have originated from this specific place name, which itself is derived from the same Old German root words.
During the 15th century, a notable figure with the surname SHELLENBERG was Johann Shellenberg (1420-1492), a German ecclesiastical lawyer and canon of the Cathedral of Cologne. He was known for his legal writings and contributions to church law.
In the 17th century, the name SHELLENBERG can be found in the records of the Thirty Years' War, with several soldiers bearing the name. One such soldier was Hans Shellenberg (1605-1678), who fought in the Catholic League's army and was later granted land in the Palatinate region of Germany.
Another notable person with the surname SHELLENBERG was Katharina Shellenberg (1724-1797), a German writer and poet from Heidelberg. She was known for her pastoral poems and her work in promoting German literature and culture.
In the 19th century, the name SHELLENBERG spread to other parts of Europe and eventually to the United States through immigration. One example is Friedrich Shellenberg (1845-1920), a German-American businessman who founded a successful brewing company in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Overall, the surname SHELLENBERG has a long and rich history, with its origins dating back to medieval Germany and connections to various regions, professions, and notable individuals throughout the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Shellenberg
Among Census respondents with the surname Shellenberg, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.0%) and Two or More Races (2.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Shellenberg 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 Shellenberg surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.9% · 92
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 3
- Two or more races2.0% · 2
- Black or African American1.0% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Shellenberg
Shellenberg 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
#149,395
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
-10 bearers (-8.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 18,952 places
2020
#156,005
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 99
-11 bearers (-10.0%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 6,610 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #130,443 | 120 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #149,395 | 110 | 0.04 | -10 bearers (-8.3%) | Down 18,952 places |
| 2020 | #156,005 | 99 | 0.03 | -11 bearers (-10.0%) | Down 6,610 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 Shellenberg 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 | #149,395 | #156,005 | -4.4% |
| Count | 110 | 99 | -10.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -17.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Shellenberg bearers went from 110 to 99 (-10.0% change). The surname moved down 6,610 positions in the national ranking, going from #149,395 to #156,005.
FAQ
Shellenberg surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Shellenberg?
Name Census estimates that about 114 living Americans carry the surname Shellenberg. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 3,006,617 residents.
How common is Shellenberg?
Shellenberg ranks #156,005 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 99 people with the surname Shellenberg. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (114), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Shellenberg.
Has Shellenberg become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Shellenberg went from 110 recorded bearers to 99. That is a decrease of 11 (-10.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #149,395 to #156,005.
What does the Census say about the background of Shellenberg?
Among Census respondents with the surname Shellenberg, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.0%) and Two or More Races (2.0%). 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 Shellenberg in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.9% (92 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Shellenberg appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.9%), Hispanic (3.0%), Two or More Races (2.0%). 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 Shellenberg (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 Shellenberg mean?
A habitational name derived from a place with a ridge or 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 Shellenberg (0.03 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 Shellenberg?
If you just want to know how common the surname Shellenberg is, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.