2000
#148,244
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Solner
A surname of Scandinavian origin, derived from a place name or occupation related to "sol" meaning sun.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 120 Americans carry the last name Solner. That puts it at #152,989 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,856,286 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Solner 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
120
1 in 2,856,286
Census rank
#152,989
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
105
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 105 bearers of the surname Solner in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 152989th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Solner, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Solner
The surname Solner is believed to have originated in Germany, specifically in the southern regions. The name can be traced back to the 14th century and is derived from the Old German word "sol," meaning mud or mire. This suggests that the name was initially an occupational name for someone who worked with mud or lived in a muddy area.
The earliest recorded instance of the name Solner can be found in a 1379 document from the town of Augsburg, which mentions a "Hans Solner." This indicates that the name was already established in this region by the late 14th century. Over time, variations in spelling emerged, including Soellner, Söllner, and Sölner.
In the 15th century, the name appears in records from the town of Passau, where a "Ulrich Solner" is mentioned in a 1432 document. This region, located near the Austrian border, is believed to be an area where the name was particularly prevalent.
One of the earliest known bearers of the Solner name was Johannes Solner, a German scholar and philosopher who lived from 1456 to 1521. He was a prominent figure in the intellectual circles of his time and authored several works on theology and philosophy.
In the 16th century, the name Solner can be found in records from the city of Nuremberg, where a "Georg Solner" is mentioned as a merchant in a 1572 document. This suggests that the name had spread to other parts of southern Germany by this time.
Another notable individual with the Solner surname was Johann Friedrich Solner, a German composer and music theorist who lived from 1719 to 1801. He was a respected figure in the world of classical music and made significant contributions to the development of music theory during the Baroque period.
During the 19th century, the name Solner gained recognition through the works of Johann Solner, a German novelist and poet who was born in 1818 and died in 1892. His literary works, which often depicted the lives of ordinary people in rural Germany, were widely acclaimed and helped to establish the Solner name in the cultural sphere.
The Solner surname can also be traced to a small village in the Black Forest region of southwestern Germany, where it is believed to have originated. This village, called Solnerhof, is thought to have been named after an early bearer of the Solner name who lived there or owned land in the area.
While the Solner name is predominantly found in Germany, it has also spread to other parts of Europe and the world through migration and immigration. However, it remains relatively uncommon outside of its region of origin in southern Germany.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Solner
Among Census respondents with the surname Solner, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Solner 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 Solner surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White96.2% · 101
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Solner
Solner 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
#158,432
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
+0 bearers (+0.0%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 10,188 places
2020
#152,989
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 105
+3 bearers (+2.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 5,443 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #148,244 | 102 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #158,432 | 102 | 0.03 | +0 bearers (+0.0%) | Down 10,188 places |
| 2020 | #152,989 | 105 | 0.04 | +3 bearers (+2.9%) | Up 5,443 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 Solner 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 | #158,432 | #152,989 | 3.4% |
| Count | 102 | 105 | 2.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.04 | 17.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Solner bearers went from 102 to 105 (+2.9% change). The surname moved up 5,443 positions in the national ranking, going from #158,432 to #152,989.
FAQ
Solner surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Solner?
Name Census estimates that about 120 living Americans carry the surname Solner. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,856,286 residents.
How common is Solner?
Solner ranks #152,989 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 105 people with the surname Solner. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (120), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Solner.
Has Solner become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Solner went from 102 recorded bearers to 105. That is an increase of 3 (+2.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #158,432 to #152,989.
What does the Census say about the background of Solner?
Among Census respondents with the surname Solner, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.0%). 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 Solner in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.2% (101 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Solner appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (96.2%), Hispanic (2.9%), Asian/Pacific Islander (1.0%). 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 Solner (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 Solner mean?
A surname of Scandinavian origin, derived from a place name or occupation related to "sol" meaning sun. 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 Solner (0.04 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 Solner?
See how common the surname Solner is on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.