2000
#8,385
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,625
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.34
Rare Last name
Trost
A German and Jewish surname derived from the German word for "comfort" or "consolation."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,165 Americans carry the last name Trost. That puts it at #8,670 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.22 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 82,294 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Trost 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Trost with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.2K
1 in 82,294
Census rank
#8,670
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,632 bearers of the surname Trost in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.22 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8670th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Trost, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.5%) and Hispanic (3.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Trost
The surname Trost is of German origin, deriving from the Middle High German word "trost," which means "comfort" or "consolation." It first emerged in the late medieval period, around the 13th to 15th centuries, in various regions of what is now modern-day Germany.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in the Nuremberg Chronicles, a famous illustrated world history published in 1493. The chronicles mention a Johann Trost, a notable figure from the city of Nuremberg during that era.
The name Trost is believed to have originally been an occupational surname, given to individuals who provided comfort or solace to others, perhaps as clergymen, counselors, or healers. It may have also been used as a descriptive surname for individuals known for their comforting or reassuring demeanor.
In the 16th century, a notable bearer of the name was Johannes Trost, a German composer and organist who lived from around 1516 to 1554. He is considered one of the earliest significant composers of the Protestant Reformation era.
Another historical figure with the surname Trost was Kaspar Trost, a German architect and sculptor who lived from 1567 to 1637. He was known for his work on various churches and buildings in the German city of Dresden.
In the 18th century, Johann Trost (1718-1768) was a renowned German mathematician and astronomer who made significant contributions to the study of celestial mechanics and the calculation of planetary orbits.
The name Trost has also been associated with various place names throughout Germany, such as Trostberg, a town in Bavaria, and Trostin, a village in Saxony-Anhalt. These place names may have influenced the spread and regional variations of the surname over time.
Other notable bearers of the Trost surname include the German-American painter and illustrator Walter Trost (1889-1971), known for his depictions of wildlife and nature scenes, and the German-born American chemist and inventor Charles Trost (1858-1935), who held numerous patents related to chemical processes and explosives.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Trost
Among Census respondents with the surname Trost, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.5%) and Hispanic (3.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Trost 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 Trost surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.6% · 3,326
- Two or more races3.5% · 128
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 120
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 32
- Black or African American0.4% · 15
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 11
Timeline
Historical Census data for Trost
Trost 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
#8,385
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,948
+323 bearers (+8.9%)
Per 100,000 1.34
Rank movement No rank change
2020
#8,670
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,632
-316 bearers (-8.0%)
Per 100,000 1.22
Rank movement Down 285 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,385 | 3,625 | 1.34 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,385 | 3,948 | 1.34 | +323 bearers (+8.9%) | No rank change |
| 2020 | #8,670 | 3,632 | 1.22 | -316 bearers (-8.0%) | Down 285 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 Trost 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 | #8,385 | #8,670 | -3.4% |
| Count | 3,948 | 3,632 | -8.0% |
| Per 100K | 1.34 | 1.22 | -9.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Trost bearers went from 3,948 to 3,632 (-8.0% change). The surname moved down 285 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,385 to #8,670.
FAQ
Trost surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Trost?
Name Census estimates that about 4,165 living Americans carry the surname Trost. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 82,294 residents.
How common is Trost?
Trost ranks #8,670 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.22 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 3,632 people with the surname Trost. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,165), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.22 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.22 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 Trost.
Has Trost become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Trost went from 3,948 recorded bearers to 3,632. That is a decrease of 316 (-8.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,385 to #8,670.
What does the Census say about the background of Trost?
Among Census respondents with the surname Trost, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.5%) and Hispanic (3.3%). 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 Trost in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.6% (3,326 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Trost appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.6%), Two or More Races (3.5%), Hispanic (3.3%). 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 Trost (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 Trost mean?
A German and Jewish surname derived from the German word for "comfort" or "consolation." 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 Trost (1.22 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 Trost?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.