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

Unger, 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 Unger surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Unger in America

Unger is the 2449th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Unger surname appeared 14,738 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 5 people would have the surname Unger.

We can also compare 2010 data for Unger 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 Unger

The surname Unger has its origins in Germany and dates back to the Middle Ages. It is derived from the German word "Unger," which means "Hungarian" or "from Hungary." This suggests that the name was likely given to people who either originated from Hungary or had some connection to the country.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Unger can be found in the town of Bruck an der Mur, located in the Austrian state of Styria. In the 14th century, a man named Ulrich Unger was mentioned in a document from 1348, indicating the presence of this surname in the region during that time period.

Another early record of the Unger name is found in the Codex Diplomaticus Brandenburgensis, a collection of historical documents from the Margraviate of Brandenburg, dating back to the 13th century. Here, a certain Johannes Unger is mentioned in a document from the year 1364.

Throughout the centuries, several notable individuals have borne the surname Unger. One prominent figure was Johann Friedrich Unger (1714-1781), a German jurist and professor of law at the University of Halle. Another was Johann Georg Unger (1715-1788), a German physician and botanist known for his work on plant taxonomy.

In the realm of literature, Theodor Unger (1806-1835) was a German poet and writer who is remembered for his contributions to the Biedermeier literary movement. Additionally, Carl Richard Unger (1836-1885) was a German historian and author who specialized in the study of ancient civilizations.

The Unger surname has also been associated with various places and geographical locations. For instance, the town of Unger in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt likely derived its name from the presence of individuals bearing this surname in the area.

Throughout history, the surname Unger has undergone various spelling variations, including Ungar, Ungher, and Unghern, reflecting the influence of different regional dialects and linguistic influences over time.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Unger

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

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 Unger 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 Unger 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 Unger was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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