Find out how popular the last name Shellenberger is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Shellenberger.

Shellenberger, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Shellenberger surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Shellenberger in America

Shellenberger is the 10453rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Shellenberger surname appeared 3,076 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Shellenberger.

We can also compare 2010 data for Shellenberger to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Shellenberger

The surname Shellenberger is of German origin, originating in the 14th century in the regions of Bavaria and Franconia. It is derived from the German words "Schell" meaning "loud" or "shrill" and "Berg" meaning "mountain" or "hill." The name likely referred to someone who lived near a noisy mountain stream or waterfall.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name dates back to 1387, when a Hans Schellenberger was mentioned in the town records of Nuremberg. Another early reference is found in a 1412 manuscript from the Benedictine monastery in Bamberg, which lists a farmer named Jorg Schellenberger among the tenants.

In the 16th century, the name appears to have spread to other parts of Germany, with records showing a Johann Schellenberger in Hesse in 1532 and a Matthias Schellenberger in Saxony in 1589.

The earliest known Shellenberger to immigrate to America was Hans Peter Shellenberger, who arrived in Philadelphia in 1738 from the Palatinate region of Germany. He settled in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, where many of his descendants still reside today.

One notable bearer of the name was Johann Baptist Shellenberger (1759-1834), a Bavarian Catholic priest and author who wrote several theological works and served as a vicar in Munich.

Another prominent figure was Johann Michael Shellenberger (1805-1881), a German-American industrialist and inventor who founded the Shellenberger Iron Works in Norristown, Pennsylvania, and patented several improvements to iron-making processes.

In the 19th century, a branch of the family settled in Ohio, where Jacob Shellenberger (1815-1896) became a prominent farmer and landowner in Darke County.

A more recent example is Michael Shellenberger (born 1971), an American author and environmental activist who co-authored the book "Apocalypse Never" and has been a vocal advocate for nuclear power.

The surname Shellenberger has also been associated with various place names over the years, such as Shellenberger's Mill in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, and the community of Shellenberger in Stark County, Ohio.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Shellenberger

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Shellenberger.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Shellenberger was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Shellenberger has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Shellenberger was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Shellenberger, please contact us.

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