2000
#8,242
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,698
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.37
Rare Last name
Siegfried
A Germanic surname derived from the elements "sige" meaning victory and "fridu" meaning peace or protection.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,094 Americans carry the last name Siegfried. That puts it at #8,814 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.19 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 83,721 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Siegfried 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
4.1K
1 in 83,721
Census rank
#8,814
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,570 bearers of the surname Siegfried in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.19 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8814th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Siegfried, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.1%) and Two or More Races (3.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Siegfried
The surname Siegfried originated in Germany and is derived from the Old German words "sigu" meaning victory and "fridu" meaning peace or protection. It is a compound name that translates to "victorious peace" or "victorious protector."
The name has its roots in Germanic mythology and is closely associated with the legendary hero Siegfried from the Nibelungenlied, an epic poem dating back to the 13th century. Siegfried was a brave warrior who slew a dragon and gained invincibility after bathing in its blood.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Siegfried can be found in the Codex Traditionum Ecclesiae Ratisbonensis, a medieval manuscript from the 9th century that documented land donations to the church in Regensburg, Germany. The name appears in various spellings, such as Sigifrido and Sigifridus.
In the 11th century, a nobleman named Siegfried von Ballhausen was mentioned in the Annales Hildesheimenses, a chronicle of the Hildesheim diocese in Lower Saxony, Germany. He was a prominent figure in the region and contributed to the construction of a church.
Another notable individual with the surname Siegfried was Gottlob Siegfried (1648-1683), a German mathematician and astronomer. He made significant contributions to the field of astronomy and published works on celestial mechanics.
During the 16th century, a place called Siegfriedshausen was recorded in the region of Thuringia, Germany. This place name likely derived from an individual named Siegfried who was associated with the area.
In the 19th century, Johann Gottfried Siegfried (1789-1854) was a German theologian and professor of Old Testament studies at the University of Erlangen. He published several works on biblical exegesis and Hebrew grammar.
Other notable individuals with the surname Siegfried include the German composer Ernst Siegfried (1817-1898), known for his operas and lieder, and the Swiss painter Albert Siegfried (1882-1958), recognized for his landscape paintings of the Swiss Alps.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Siegfried
Among Census respondents with the surname Siegfried, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.1%) and Two or More Races (3.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Siegfried 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 Siegfried surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.2% · 3,256
- Hispanic or Latino4.1% · 147
- Two or more races3.2% · 113
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 32
- Black or African American0.4% · 14
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Siegfried
Siegfried 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
#8,878
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,688
-10 bearers (-0.3%)
Per 100,000 1.25
Rank movement Down 636 places
2020
#8,814
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,570
-118 bearers (-3.2%)
Per 100,000 1.19
Rank movement Up 64 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,242 | 3,698 | 1.37 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,878 | 3,688 | 1.25 | -10 bearers (-0.3%) | Down 636 places |
| 2020 | #8,814 | 3,570 | 1.19 | -118 bearers (-3.2%) | Up 64 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 Siegfried 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 | #8,878 | #8,814 | 0.7% |
| Count | 3,688 | 3,570 | -3.2% |
| Per 100K | 1.25 | 1.19 | -4.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Siegfried bearers went from 3,688 to 3,570 (-3.2% change). The surname moved up 64 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,878 to #8,814.
FAQ
Siegfried surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Siegfried?
Name Census estimates that about 4,094 living Americans carry the surname Siegfried. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 83,721 residents.
How common is Siegfried?
Siegfried ranks #8,814 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.19 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 3,570 people with the surname Siegfried. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,094), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.19 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.19 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 Siegfried.
Has Siegfried become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Siegfried went from 3,688 recorded bearers to 3,570. That is a decrease of 118 (-3.2%). In the national ranking it rose from #8,878 to #8,814.
What does the Census say about the background of Siegfried?
Among Census respondents with the surname Siegfried, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.1%) and Two or More Races (3.2%). 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 Siegfried in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.2% (3,256 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Siegfried appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.2%), Hispanic (4.1%), Two or More Races (3.2%). 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 Siegfried (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 Siegfried mean?
A Germanic surname derived from the elements "sige" meaning victory and "fridu" meaning peace or protection. 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 Siegfried (1.19 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 Americans have the surname Siegfried?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.