2000
#135,837
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Timer
A surname indicating the bearer's occupation involved measuring time.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 140 Americans carry the last name Timer. That puts it at #140,525 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,448,245 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Timer 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
140
1 in 2,448,245
Census rank
#140,525
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
122
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 122 bearers of the surname Timer in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 140525th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Timer, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.8%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (3.3%) and Black (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Timer
The surname Timer is believed to have originated in Germany, where it first appeared in the late 12th century. The name is derived from the Middle High German word "tîmer," which means "carpenter" or "builder." This suggests that the earliest bearers of the Timer surname were likely skilled tradesmen who worked with wood and constructed buildings or other structures.
In its earliest forms, the name was often spelled as "Tymmer" or "Tymermann," reflecting the phonetic spelling of the time. The Timer surname can be found in various historical records from the 13th and 14th centuries, including town registers and tax rolls from various regions of Germany, such as Bavaria and Saxony.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the Timer surname was Hans Tymmer, a carpenter from the town of Nuremberg who lived in the late 15th century. Another notable figure was Johann Tymermann, a master builder from Freiburg who was responsible for the construction of several churches and public buildings in the early 16th century.
As the Timer family spread across Europe, the surname evolved to reflect local linguistic variations. In the Netherlands, for instance, it became "Timmerman," while in England, it was anglicized to "Timberman" or "Timmerman." Some notable individuals with these variations of the surname include Pieter Timmerman, a Dutch painter from the 17th century, and Sir John Timberman, an English merchant and member of the Parliament in the late 16th century.
Other notable figures with the Timer surname include Johann Christoph Timer, a German composer and organist who lived in the late 17th century, and Friedrich Timer, a German philosopher and writer from the 19th century. In more recent times, the name has been associated with individuals such as Erich Timer, a German-American physicist who made significant contributions to the development of nuclear energy in the mid-20th century.
While the Timer surname is most commonly found in Germany and other Germanic countries, it has also spread to various parts of the world through migration and cultural diffusion. Today, the name is found in many countries, with variations in spelling and pronunciation reflecting the diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds of its bearers.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Timer
Among Census respondents with the surname Timer, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.8%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (3.3%) and Black (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Timer 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 Timer surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.8% · 112
- American Indian and Alaska Native3.3% · 4
- Black or African American2.5% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.5% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Timer
Timer 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
#157,234
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 103
-11 bearers (-9.6%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 21,397 places
2020
#140,525
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 122
+19 bearers (+18.4%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 16,709 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #135,837 | 114 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #157,234 | 103 | 0.03 | -11 bearers (-9.6%) | Down 21,397 places |
| 2020 | #140,525 | 122 | 0.04 | +19 bearers (+18.4%) | Up 16,709 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 Timer 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 | #157,234 | #140,525 | 10.6% |
| Count | 103 | 122 | 18.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.04 | 36.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Timer bearers went from 103 to 122 (+18.4% change). The surname moved up 16,709 positions in the national ranking, going from #157,234 to #140,525.
FAQ
Timer surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Timer?
Name Census estimates that about 140 living Americans carry the surname Timer. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,448,245 residents.
How common is Timer?
Timer ranks #140,525 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 122 people with the surname Timer. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (140), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Timer.
Has Timer become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Timer went from 103 recorded bearers to 122. That is an increase of 19 (+18.4%). In the national ranking it rose from #157,234 to #140,525.
What does the Census say about the background of Timer?
Among Census respondents with the surname Timer, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.8%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (3.3%) and Black (2.5%). 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 Timer in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.8% (112 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Timer appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.8%), American Indian/Alaska Native (3.3%), Black (2.5%). 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 Timer (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 Timer mean?
A surname indicating the bearer's occupation involved measuring time. 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 Timer (0.04 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 Timer?
If you just want to know how many Americans have the surname Timer, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.