2000
#12,213
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,339
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.87
Rare Last name
Teitelbaum
A Jewish surname of Yiddish origin, meaning "date tree" or "palm tree."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,737 Americans carry the last name Teitelbaum. That puts it at #9,538 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.09 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 91,719 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Teitelbaum 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
3.7K
1 in 91,719
Census rank
#9,538
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,259 bearers of the surname Teitelbaum in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.09 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9538th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Teitelbaum, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.9%) and Two or More Races (1.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Teitelbaum
The surname Teitelbaum is of Yiddish and German origin, first appearing in the 16th century. It is a compound name derived from the German words "teutel" meaning little barrel or keg, and "baum" meaning tree. The name likely referred to someone who lived near a distinctive barrel-shaped tree or worked with barrels.
The earliest known record of the name is from 1523 in the town of Fürth, Bavaria, where a Salomon Teitelbaum is mentioned in tax records. By the 17th century, the name had spread to other regions of Germany and Poland. Variations in spelling included Teytelbawm, Teitelbaume, and Teitelboim.
One of the earliest notable individuals with this surname was Rabbi Moshe Teitelbaum (1759-1841), a renowned Hasidic leader and founder of the Satu Mare Hasidic dynasty in Hungary. His descendants continued to use the name, including Rabbi Yoel Teitelbaum (1887-1979), the Satmar Rebbe who re-established the dynasty in New York after World War II.
Other historically significant individuals with this surname include Eliezer Teitelbaum (1851-1926), a Polish-born American businessman and philanthropist who co-founded the Federation of Jewish Philanthropies in New York City. Isadore Teitelbaum (1870-1945) was a Polish-born American rabbi and author, known for his work on Jewish law and ethics.
In the literary world, Isaac Bashevis Singer (1902-1991), the Nobel Prize-winning Yiddish author, was born Izaak Zynger but later changed his surname to the German-Jewish Teitelbaum before reverting to Singer. The name was also used by the American novelist and short story writer, Beatrice Bishop Teitelbaum (1914-2003).
While the surname Teitelbaum originated in Central Europe, it has since spread to Jewish communities worldwide, with notable bearers in Israel, the United States, Canada, and other countries. However, its roots can be traced back to the German-speaking regions of the 16th century and the distinctive imagery of a barrel-shaped tree.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Teitelbaum
Among Census respondents with the surname Teitelbaum, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.9%) and Two or More Races (1.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Teitelbaum 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 Teitelbaum surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White96.2% · 3,135
- Hispanic or Latino1.9% · 61
- Two or more races1.0% · 32
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 21
- Black or African American0.3% · 9
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Teitelbaum
Teitelbaum 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
#11,016
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,887
+548 bearers (+23.4%)
Per 100,000 0.98
Rank movement Up 1,197 places
2020
#9,538
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,259
+372 bearers (+12.9%)
Per 100,000 1.09
Rank movement Up 1,478 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,213 | 2,339 | 0.87 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,016 | 2,887 | 0.98 | +548 bearers (+23.4%) | Up 1,197 places |
| 2020 | #9,538 | 3,259 | 1.09 | +372 bearers (+12.9%) | Up 1,478 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 Teitelbaum 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 | #11,016 | #9,538 | 13.4% |
| Count | 2,887 | 3,259 | 12.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.98 | 1.09 | 11.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Teitelbaum bearers went from 2,887 to 3,259 (+12.9% change). The surname moved up 1,478 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,016 to #9,538.
FAQ
Teitelbaum surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Teitelbaum?
Name Census estimates that about 3,737 living Americans carry the surname Teitelbaum. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 91,719 residents.
How common is Teitelbaum?
Teitelbaum ranks #9,538 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.09 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 3,259 people with the surname Teitelbaum. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,737), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.09 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.09 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Teitelbaum.
Has Teitelbaum become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Teitelbaum went from 2,887 recorded bearers to 3,259. That is an increase of 372 (+12.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #11,016 to #9,538.
What does the Census say about the background of Teitelbaum?
Among Census respondents with the surname Teitelbaum, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.9%) and Two or More Races (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 Teitelbaum in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.2% (3,135 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Teitelbaum appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (96.2%), Hispanic (1.9%), Two or More Races (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 Teitelbaum (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 Teitelbaum mean?
A Jewish surname of Yiddish origin, meaning "date tree" or "palm tree." 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 Teitelbaum (1.09 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 Americans have the surname Teitelbaum?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.