2000
#56,120
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 341
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.13
Very Rare Last name
Spross
An occupational surname referring to one who made or sold sprouts or sprigs.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 362 Americans carry the last name Spross. That puts it at #67,362 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.11 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 946,835 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Spross 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
362
1 in 946,835
Census rank
#67,362
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
316
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 316 bearers of the surname Spross in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.11 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 67362nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Spross, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.2%) and Two or More Races (2.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Spross
The surname SPROSS is of German origin, with roots dating back to the Middle Ages. It is believed to have derived from the Middle High German word "spruoz," which means "sprout" or "shoot," suggesting a connection to agriculture or horticulture.
One of the earliest known references to the surname SPROSS can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae Regiae, a collection of medieval documents from Saxony, Germany. In this collection, a certain "Henricus Spross" is mentioned in a document dated 1378, indicating the presence of the surname in that region during the 14th century.
The SPROSS name has also been associated with various place names in Germany, such as Sprossau, a town in Lower Silesia, and Sprosshausen, a village in Hesse. These place names may have influenced the spelling variations of the surname over time.
Notable individuals with the surname SPROSS include Johann Christoph Spross (1717-1788), a German composer and organist who served in the court of the Elector of Saxony. Another prominent figure was Friedrich Wilhelm Spross (1809-1882), a German lawyer and politician who served as a member of the Prussian House of Representatives.
In the 18th century, a family of SPROSS silversmiths gained recognition in the city of Augsburg, Germany. Among them was Johann Georg Spross (1720-1787), whose intricate silverwork pieces are still admired today.
Across the Atlantic, the SPROSS surname can be traced back to the 19th century in America. One notable example is Johann Christoph Spross (1789-1855), a German immigrant who settled in Pennsylvania and worked as a cabinetmaker, contributing to the local craftsmanship tradition.
Another individual of note was Carl Friedrich Spross (1845-1920), a German-American architect who designed several prominent buildings in St. Louis, Missouri, including the St. Louis Public Library and the St. Louis Cathedral Basilica.
While the SPROSS surname may not be among the most common, its historical presence across various regions of Germany and its eventual migration to other parts of the world serve as a testament to its enduring legacy.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Spross
Among Census respondents with the surname Spross, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.2%) and Two or More Races (2.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Spross 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 Spross surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.3% · 298
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 10
- Two or more races2.2% · 7
- Black or African American0.3% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Spross
Spross 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
#60,505
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 333
-8 bearers (-2.3%)
Per 100,000 0.11
Rank movement Down 4,385 places
2020
#67,362
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 316
-17 bearers (-5.1%)
Per 100,000 0.11
Rank movement Down 6,857 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #56,120 | 341 | 0.13 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #60,505 | 333 | 0.11 | -8 bearers (-2.3%) | Down 4,385 places |
| 2020 | #67,362 | 316 | 0.11 | -17 bearers (-5.1%) | Down 6,857 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 Spross 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 | #60,505 | #67,362 | -11.3% |
| Count | 333 | 316 | -5.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.11 | 0.11 | -3.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Spross bearers went from 333 to 316 (-5.1% change). The surname moved down 6,857 positions in the national ranking, going from #60,505 to #67,362.
FAQ
Spross surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Spross?
Name Census estimates that about 362 living Americans carry the surname Spross. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 946,835 residents.
How common is Spross?
Spross ranks #67,362 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.11 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 316 people with the surname Spross. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (362), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.11 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.11 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 Spross.
Has Spross become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Spross went from 333 recorded bearers to 316. That is a decrease of 17 (-5.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #60,505 to #67,362.
What does the Census say about the background of Spross?
Among Census respondents with the surname Spross, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.2%) and Two or More Races (2.2%). 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 Spross in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.3% (298 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Spross appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.3%), Hispanic (3.2%), Two or More Races (2.2%). 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 Spross (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 Spross mean?
An occupational surname referring to one who made or sold sprouts or sprigs. 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 Spross (0.11 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 Spross?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.