2000
#150,436
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 100
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Spenrath
A habitational name derived from a place name in Germany.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 119 Americans carry the last name Spenrath. That puts it at #153,590 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,880,289 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Spenrath 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
119
1 in 2,880,289
Census rank
#153,590
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
104
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 104 bearers of the surname Spenrath in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 153590th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Spenrath, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (7.7%) and Hispanic (3.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Spenrath
The surname SPENRATH is of German origin, emerging in the regions of North Rhine-Westphalia and Lower Saxony during the late medieval period. It is believed to be derived from the Old German words "spen" meaning "chip" or "splinter" and "rath" meaning "forest clearing" or "meadow." Therefore, the name likely referred to someone who lived in a forest clearing or meadow where wood chips or splinters were present.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name dates back to 1397, when a Johannes Spenrath was mentioned in the town records of Dortmund, located in what is now North Rhine-Westphalia. Another early reference can be found in the archives of the city of Münster, where a Henricus Spenrath was documented in 1432.
The name also appears in the historical records of the town of Lüdenscheid, located in the Sauerland region of North Rhine-Westphalia. Here, a family by the name of Spenrath is mentioned as early as the 16th century, with a Gerhard Spenrath being recorded in 1562.
During the 17th century, the surname SPENRATH began to spread beyond its original geographic confines. One notable bearer was Johann Spenrath (1623-1701), a German theologian and philosopher who served as a professor at the University of Heidelberg.
In the 18th century, the name can be found in the records of the city of Osnabrück, in Lower Saxony. Here, a merchant named Christian Spenrath (1722-1789) was a prominent citizen and member of the city council.
Another individual of note was Friedrich Spenrath (1798-1875), a German politician and lawyer who served as a member of the Prussian House of Representatives and the Frankfurt Parliament during the revolutionary year of 1848.
As the name SPENRATH spread across Germany and into neighboring regions, it underwent minor variations in spelling, such as Spenraht, Spenrath, and Spenrad. However, the core elements of the name remained largely intact, preserving its connection to the German countryside and its historical roots.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Spenrath
Among Census respondents with the surname Spenrath, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (7.7%) and Hispanic (3.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Spenrath 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 Spenrath surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White85.6% · 89
- Two or more races7.7% · 8
- Hispanic or Latino3.8% · 4
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.9% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Spenrath
Spenrath 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
#153,769
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 106
+6 bearers (+6.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 3,333 places
2020
#153,590
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 104
-2 bearers (-1.9%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Up 179 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #150,436 | 100 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #153,769 | 106 | 0.04 | +6 bearers (+6.0%) | Down 3,333 places |
| 2020 | #153,590 | 104 | 0.03 | -2 bearers (-1.9%) | Up 179 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 Spenrath 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 | #153,769 | #153,590 | 0.1% |
| Count | 106 | 104 | -1.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -13.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Spenrath bearers went from 106 to 104 (-1.9% change). The surname moved up 179 positions in the national ranking, going from #153,769 to #153,590.
FAQ
Spenrath surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Spenrath?
Name Census estimates that about 119 living Americans carry the surname Spenrath. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,880,289 residents.
How common is Spenrath?
Spenrath ranks #153,590 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 104 people with the surname Spenrath. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (119), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Spenrath.
Has Spenrath become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Spenrath went from 106 recorded bearers to 104. That is a decrease of 2 (-1.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #153,769 to #153,590.
What does the Census say about the background of Spenrath?
Among Census respondents with the surname Spenrath, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (7.7%) and Hispanic (3.8%). 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 Spenrath in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.6% (89 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Spenrath appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (85.6%), Two or More Races (7.7%), Hispanic (3.8%). 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 Spenrath (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 Spenrath mean?
A habitational name derived from a place name in Germany. 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 Spenrath (0.03 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 Spenrath?
Find out how many people have the last name Spenrath on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.