2000
#6,057
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,224
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.94
Rare Last name
Sievers
Derived from a German personal name, Sievert, which meant "courageous" or "bold."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,782 Americans carry the last name Sievers. That puts it at #6,477 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.69 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 59,280 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Sievers 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
5.8K
1 in 59,280
Census rank
#6,477
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,042 bearers of the surname Sievers in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.69 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6477th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Sievers, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.8%) and Two or More Races (3.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Sievers
The surname Sievers is of German origin and dates back to the Middle Ages. It is thought to have derived from the Middle Low German word "siver," meaning a draining ditch or small stream. This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone who lived near such a water feature.
One of the earliest known records of the name Sievers appears in the town of Lübeck, located in northern Germany, in the 14th century. It is believed that the surname first emerged in this region. Other early spellings of the name include Syvers, Sivers, and Sieffer.
In the 16th century, a man named Hans Sievers was recorded as a merchant in the city of Hamburg. This provides evidence of the name's presence in various parts of northern Germany during this time period.
The name Sievers is also linked to several place names in Germany, such as Sieversfleth and Sievershafen, both located in the state of Schleswig-Holstein. These place names likely originated from individuals bearing the surname Sievers who lived or owned property in those areas.
One notable individual with the surname Sievers was Johann Sievers, a German poet and writer who lived from 1762 to 1795. He was born in the town of Letmathe, which is now part of the city of Iserlohn in North Rhine-Westphalia.
Another prominent figure with this surname was Eduard Sievers, a German philologist and linguist who made significant contributions to the study of Germanic languages. He was born in 1850 in Lippstadt, Westphalia, and passed away in 1932.
In the 19th century, a man named Gustav Sievers gained recognition as a German explorer and geographer. He was born in 1847 in Lübeck and is particularly known for his expeditions to South America, including the exploration of the Orinoco River basin.
Additionally, the surname Sievers has been associated with several notable academics and scientists. For example, Franz Sievers was a German physicist who lived from 1878 to 1966 and made contributions to the field of spectroscopy.
While the surname Sievers has its roots in northern Germany, it has since spread to other parts of the world through migration and immigration. However, its earliest origins and historical records can be traced back to the medieval period in the region around Lübeck and Hamburg.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sievers
Among Census respondents with the surname Sievers, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.8%) and Two or More Races (3.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Sievers 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 Sievers surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.9% · 4,583
- Hispanic or Latino3.8% · 192
- Two or more races3.0% · 152
- Black or African American1.1% · 53
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 52
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Sievers
Sievers 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
#6,363
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,349
+125 bearers (+2.4%)
Per 100,000 1.81
Rank movement Down 306 places
2020
#6,477
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,042
-307 bearers (-5.7%)
Per 100,000 1.69
Rank movement Down 114 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,057 | 5,224 | 1.94 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,363 | 5,349 | 1.81 | +125 bearers (+2.4%) | Down 306 places |
| 2020 | #6,477 | 5,042 | 1.69 | -307 bearers (-5.7%) | Down 114 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 Sievers 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 | #6,363 | #6,477 | -1.8% |
| Count | 5,349 | 5,042 | -5.7% |
| Per 100K | 1.81 | 1.69 | -6.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Sievers bearers went from 5,349 to 5,042 (-5.7% change). The surname moved down 114 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,363 to #6,477.
FAQ
Sievers surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Sievers?
Name Census estimates that about 5,782 living Americans carry the surname Sievers. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 59,280 residents.
How common is Sievers?
Sievers ranks #6,477 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.69 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,042 people with the surname Sievers. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,782), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.69 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.69 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Sievers.
Has Sievers become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Sievers went from 5,349 recorded bearers to 5,042. That is a decrease of 307 (-5.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #6,363 to #6,477.
What does the Census say about the background of Sievers?
Among Census respondents with the surname Sievers, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.8%) and Two or More Races (3.0%). 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 Sievers in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.9% (4,583 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Sievers appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.9%), Hispanic (3.8%), Two or More Races (3.0%). 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 Sievers (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 Sievers mean?
Derived from a German personal name, Sievert, which meant "courageous" or "bold." 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 Sievers (1.69 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 Sievers?
Find out how common the surname Sievers is on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.