2000
#49,057
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 403
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.15
Very Rare Last name
Sonnenfeld
A German surname derived from a combination of "Sonne" (sun) and "Feld" (field), possibly referring to someone living in a sunny field or working land exposed to the sun.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 483 Americans carry the last name Sonnenfeld. That puts it at #53,103 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.14 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 709,636 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Sonnenfeld 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
483
1 in 709,636
Census rank
#53,103
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
421
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 421 bearers of the surname Sonnenfeld in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.14 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 53103rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Sonnenfeld, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.4%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Sonnenfeld
The surname Sonnenfeld is of German origin, derived from the Middle High German words "sunne" meaning sun and "velt" meaning field or open land. It likely emerged in the late medieval period, referring to someone who lived near a sunny field or meadow.
One of the earliest known references to the name Sonnenfeld dates back to a 1487 document from the town of Rothenburg ob der Tauber in Bavaria, which mentions a "Hans Sonnenfeldt." This suggests the name was already well-established in southern Germany by the late 15th century.
In the 16th century, records show a Sonnenfeld family living in the village of Oberderdingen near Karlsruhe in Baden-Württemberg. A 1558 church register lists the birth of a son named Georg to parents Claus and Anna Sonnenfeld.
The variant spelling "Sonnenfelt" appears in a 1612 tax record from the town of Geislingen an der Steige in Baden-Württemberg, indicating the name had spread to other parts of southwestern Germany by the early 1600s.
One notable early bearer of the surname was Johann Philipp Sonnenfeld, a Lutheran theologian born in Wertheim am Main in 1662. He served as a pastor and published several religious texts before his death in 1724.
In the 18th century, the name Sonnenfeld can be found in records from Bavaria, Saxony, and other German states. Johann Georg Sonnenfeld (1720-1798) was a master baker and citizen of the Free Imperial City of Rothenburg ob der Tauber.
As the name spread, variations like Sonnenfelde, Sonnenfeldt, and Sonnenveld emerged, likely influenced by local dialects and scribes' spelling preferences. Anna Margaretha Sonnenfelde (1754-1832) was a resident of Michelbach an der Bilz in Baden-Württemberg.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sonnenfeld
Among Census respondents with the surname Sonnenfeld, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.4%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Sonnenfeld 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 Sonnenfeld surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White95.2% · 401
- Two or more races2.4% · 10
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 4
- Hispanic or Latino0.7% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Sonnenfeld
Sonnenfeld 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
#48,800
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 432
+29 bearers (+7.2%)
Per 100,000 0.15
Rank movement Up 257 places
2020
#53,103
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 421
-11 bearers (-2.5%)
Per 100,000 0.14
Rank movement Down 4,303 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #49,057 | 403 | 0.15 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #48,800 | 432 | 0.15 | +29 bearers (+7.2%) | Up 257 places |
| 2020 | #53,103 | 421 | 0.14 | -11 bearers (-2.5%) | Down 4,303 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 Sonnenfeld 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 | #48,800 | #53,103 | -8.8% |
| Count | 432 | 421 | -2.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.15 | 0.14 | -6.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Sonnenfeld bearers went from 432 to 421 (-2.5% change). The surname moved down 4,303 positions in the national ranking, going from #48,800 to #53,103.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Sonnenfeld
FAQ
Sonnenfeld surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Sonnenfeld?
Name Census estimates that about 483 living Americans carry the surname Sonnenfeld. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 709,636 residents.
How common is Sonnenfeld?
Sonnenfeld ranks #53,103 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.14 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 421 people with the surname Sonnenfeld. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (483), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.14 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.14 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 Sonnenfeld.
Has Sonnenfeld become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Sonnenfeld went from 432 recorded bearers to 421. That is a decrease of 11 (-2.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #48,800 to #53,103.
What does the Census say about the background of Sonnenfeld?
Among Census respondents with the surname Sonnenfeld, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.4%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (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 Sonnenfeld in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.2% (401 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Sonnenfeld appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (95.2%), Two or More Races (2.4%), American Indian/Alaska Native (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 Sonnenfeld (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 Sonnenfeld mean?
A German surname derived from a combination of "Sonne" (sun) and "Feld" (field), possibly referring to someone living in a sunny field or working land exposed to the 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 Sonnenfeld (0.14 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 surname Sonnenfeld?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.