Find out how popular the last name Sternthal is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Sternthal.

Sternthal, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Sternthal surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Sternthal in America

Sternthal is the 124548th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Sternthal surname appeared 138 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Sternthal.

We can also compare 2010 data for Sternthal to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Sternthal

The surname Sternthal is of German origin, and is believed to have originated in the 13th century from the region of Bavaria. The name is derived from the German words "stern" meaning star, and "thal" meaning valley, likely referring to a geographical location or settlement named "Star Valley."

One of the earliest recorded references to the name Sternthal can be found in the Bavarian State Archives, dating back to 1287. This document mentions a certain "Heinrich Sternthal" who was a landowner in the town of Landshut.

In the late 15th century, the name appears in the records of the University of Heidelberg, with a student named "Johannes Sternthal" enrolling in 1492. This suggests that the name had spread beyond its Bavarian origins by this time.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, the Sternthal name can be found in various church registers and municipal records across southern Germany, particularly in the regions of Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg, and the Rhineland.

One notable figure bearing the Sternthal name was Johann Michael Sternthal (1647-1715), a Baroque architect and engineer from Heidelberg, who was responsible for the design and construction of several churches and public buildings in the region.

Another individual of note was Maria Ludovica Sternthal (1722-1798), a Benedictine abbess who served as the head of the Frauenchiemsee Abbey in Bavaria for over three decades.

In the 19th century, the Sternthal name gained prominence with the birth of Gustav Sternthal (1808-1872), a German philologist and linguist who is credited with pioneering the study of comparative Indo-European linguistics.

Towards the end of the 19th century, a certain Wilhelm Sternthal (1868-1942) became a prominent figure in the German banking industry, serving as the director of the Bayerische Vereinsbank in Munich.

The early 20th century saw the rise of Erich Sternthal (1892-1961), a German philosopher and academic who taught at various universities across Europe, including the University of Heidelberg and the University of Vienna.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Sternthal

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Sternthal.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Sternthal was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Sternthal has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Sternthal was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Sternthal, please contact us.

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