2000
#8,331
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,655
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.35
Rare Last name
Sigman
An occupational surname referring to a victor or winner, derived from the German word "sieg" meaning victory.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,955 Americans carry the last name Sigman. That puts it at #9,101 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.15 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 86,664 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Sigman 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
4.0K
1 in 86,664
Census rank
#9,101
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,449 bearers of the surname Sigman in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.15 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9101st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Sigman, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.0%) and Hispanic (2.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Sigman
The surname Sigman originates from Germany, where it first appeared in the 12th century. It is derived from the German word "siegen," meaning "to conquer" or "to be victorious." This suggests that the name may have been given to someone who had achieved a significant victory or triumph.
One of the earliest known recorded instances of the name can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Rheno-Mosellanus, a collection of medieval documents from the Rhineland region of Germany, dating back to the year 1160. The name appears as "Sigeman," which is believed to be an early spelling variation.
In the 13th century, the name Sigman appeared in several historical records from the town of Cologne, Germany. These records include references to individuals such as Johann Sigman, a merchant who lived in Cologne in the late 1200s, and Hildegard Sigman, a landowner in the surrounding area around the same time period.
The name Sigman is also associated with the town of Sigmaringen, located in the state of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. While the exact connection between the name and the town is unclear, it is possible that the name may have originated from this location or that early bearers of the name may have hailed from Sigmaringen.
One notable historical figure with the surname Sigman was Johann Christoph Sigman (1730-1787), a German architect who designed several notable buildings in the Baroque style, including the Hofkirche in Sigmaringen.
Another individual of note was Friedrich Wilhelm Sigman (1796-1868), a German philosopher and writer who wrote extensively on ethics and metaphysics.
In the 19th century, the name Sigman can be found in records from various parts of Germany, including Bavaria, Saxony, and Rhineland-Palatinate. This suggests that the name had spread across different regions of the country by this time.
Other notable individuals with the surname Sigman include:
1. Heinrich Sigman (1851-1923), a German painter known for his landscape and genre paintings.
2. Karl Sigman (1876-1944), a German politician and member of the Reichstag during the Weimar Republic.
3. Joachim Sigman (1924-2005), a German actor and theater director who appeared in numerous stage productions and films.
4. Erich Sigman (1938-2019), a German-born American engineer and inventor who held numerous patents in the field of telecommunications.
5. Björn Sigman (born 1969), a Swedish former professional tennis player who reached a career-high ranking of No. 24 in the world in the 1990s.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sigman
Among Census respondents with the surname Sigman, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.0%) and Hispanic (2.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Sigman 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 Sigman surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.5% · 3,156
- Two or more races3.0% · 104
- Hispanic or Latino2.7% · 93
- Black or African American1.6% · 54
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 35
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 7
Timeline
Historical Census data for Sigman
Sigman 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
#8,395
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,942
+287 bearers (+7.9%)
Per 100,000 1.34
Rank movement Down 64 places
2020
#9,101
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,449
-493 bearers (-12.5%)
Per 100,000 1.15
Rank movement Down 706 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,331 | 3,655 | 1.35 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,395 | 3,942 | 1.34 | +287 bearers (+7.9%) | Down 64 places |
| 2020 | #9,101 | 3,449 | 1.15 | -493 bearers (-12.5%) | Down 706 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 Sigman 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 | #8,395 | #9,101 | -8.4% |
| Count | 3,942 | 3,449 | -12.5% |
| Per 100K | 1.34 | 1.15 | -13.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Sigman bearers went from 3,942 to 3,449 (-12.5% change). The surname moved down 706 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,395 to #9,101.
FAQ
Sigman surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Sigman?
Name Census estimates that about 3,955 living Americans carry the surname Sigman. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 86,664 residents.
How common is Sigman?
Sigman ranks #9,101 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.15 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 3,449 people with the surname Sigman. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,955), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.15 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.15 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 Sigman.
Has Sigman become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Sigman went from 3,942 recorded bearers to 3,449. That is a decrease of 493 (-12.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,395 to #9,101.
What does the Census say about the background of Sigman?
Among Census respondents with the surname Sigman, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.0%) and Hispanic (2.7%). 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 Sigman in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.5% (3,156 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Sigman appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.5%), Two or More Races (3.0%), Hispanic (2.7%). 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 Sigman (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 Sigman mean?
An occupational surname referring to a victor or winner, derived from the German word "sieg" meaning victory. 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 Sigman (1.15 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 are called Sigman?
See how many people have the last name Sigman on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.