2010
#153,769
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 106
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Strehlau
A habitational surname derived from the town of Strzelin, located in southwest Poland.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 116 Americans carry the last name Strehlau. That puts it at #155,270 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,954,779 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Strehlau 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
116
1 in 2,954,779
Census rank
#155,270
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
101
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 101 bearers of the surname Strehlau in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 155270th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Strehlau, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.0%) and Hispanic (1.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Strehlau
The surname Strehlau is of German origin and traces its roots back to the Middle Ages. The name is derived from the German word "Strehl," which means "ray" or "beam," and the suffix "-au," which refers to a meadow or a river island. This suggests that the name may have originated in an area with meadows or river islands where rays of sunlight shone through.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Strehlau name can be found in the town of Strehlau (now known as Strzelno) in the Pomeranian region of modern-day Poland. This town was first mentioned in historical records in the 13th century, and it is likely that the surname originated from this location.
In the 14th century, a notable figure named Johannes Strehlau was a prominent merchant and landowner in the city of Lübeck, which was a major trading center in the Hanseatic League. Records from this period indicate that he played a significant role in the city's economic and political affairs.
During the 16th century, a family bearing the Strehlau name was documented in the town of Strehlau (now Strzelin) in the Silesian region of modern-day Poland. This region was part of the Holy Roman Empire at the time, and the family was likely involved in agriculture or other local industries.
In the 17th century, a Lutheran minister named Johann Strehlau (1637-1712) gained recognition for his theological writings and his work as a pastor in various churches in the German states of Saxony and Brandenburg.
Another notable figure with the Strehlau surname was Friedrich Wilhelm Strehlau (1808-1869), a German historian and archivist who specialized in the study of Silesian history. He authored several books and publications on the subject and served as the director of the Prussian State Archives in Breslau (now Wrocław, Poland).
Throughout history, the Strehlau name has been associated with various occupations and professions, ranging from merchants and landowners to clergy and scholars. While the name originated in specific regions of modern-day Germany and Poland, it has since spread to other parts of the world due to migration and diaspora.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Strehlau
Among Census respondents with the surname Strehlau, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.0%) and Hispanic (1.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Strehlau 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 Strehlau surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White96.0% · 97
- Two or more races2.0% · 2
- Hispanic or Latino1.0% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Strehlau
Strehlau appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#155,270
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 101
-5 bearers (-4.7%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 1,501 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #153,769 | 106 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #155,270 | 101 | 0.03 | -5 bearers (-4.7%) | Down 1,501 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 Strehlau 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 | #155,270 | -1.0% |
| Count | 106 | 101 | -4.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -15.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Strehlau bearers went from 106 to 101 (-4.7% change). The surname moved down 1,501 positions in the national ranking, going from #153,769 to #155,270.
FAQ
Strehlau surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Strehlau?
Name Census estimates that about 116 living Americans carry the surname Strehlau. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,954,779 residents.
How common is Strehlau?
Strehlau ranks #155,270 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 101 people with the surname Strehlau. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (116), 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 Strehlau.
Has Strehlau become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Strehlau went from 106 recorded bearers to 101. That is a decrease of 5 (-4.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #153,769 to #155,270.
What does the Census say about the background of Strehlau?
Among Census respondents with the surname Strehlau, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.0%) and Hispanic (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 Strehlau in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.0% (97 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Strehlau appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (96.0%), Two or More Races (2.0%), Hispanic (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 Strehlau (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 Strehlau mean?
A habitational surname derived from the town of Strzelin, located in southwest Poland. 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 Strehlau (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 share the surname Strehlau?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.