2000
#140,756
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 109
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Unterborn
A German surname meaning "from or of the lower village".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 118 Americans carry the last name Unterborn. That puts it at #154,182 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,904,698 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Unterborn 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
118
1 in 2,904,698
Census rank
#154,182
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
103
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 103 bearers of the surname Unterborn in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 154182nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Unterborn, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Unterborn
The surname Unterborn originated in the German-speaking regions of Europe, with its earliest recorded instances dating back to the 13th century. The name is derived from the Old German words "unter" meaning "under" and "born" meaning "spring" or "well," suggesting that the original bearers of this name may have lived near a natural spring or well located at a lower elevation.
Unterborn is a locational surname, indicating that the name's origins can be traced back to a specific place or region. In this case, the name is believed to have originated from various small villages or hamlets across Germany and Switzerland, where natural springs or wells were found in lower-lying areas.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Unterborn name can be found in a 1297 document from the town of Unterborn in the German state of Hesse, where a certain "Heinrich von Unterborn" is mentioned. This suggests that the name may have initially been used as a descriptive identifier for individuals hailing from this particular location.
In the 15th century, the Unterborn name appeared in various records across the regions of Saxony and Bavaria. Notable individuals from this period include Johann Unterborn (c. 1420-1489), a renowned metalsmith and guild master in the city of Nuremberg, and Katharina Unterborn (c. 1460-1522), a prominent figure in the local textile trade in the town of Freiberg.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the Unterborn name continued to spread across various German-speaking regions, including Switzerland and Austria. One notable figure from this era was Hans Unterborn (1540-1618), a respected jurist and legal scholar from the city of Zurich, who wrote extensively on the codification of Swiss laws.
As the Unterborn family members migrated and settled in different areas, the name underwent slight variations in spelling, such as Unterboren, Underborn, and Unterbourne. These variations reflect the regional dialects and linguistic influences of the areas where the name took root.
In the 19th century, several individuals with the Unterborn surname made significant contributions to various fields. Among them were Friedrich Unterborn (1811-1876), a celebrated composer and music theorist from Leipzig, and Emilie Unterborn (1828-1892), a pioneering educator and advocate for women's rights in the city of Frankfurt.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Unterborn
Among Census respondents with the surname Unterborn, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Unterborn 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 Unterborn surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.2% · 97
- Hispanic or Latino3.9% · 4
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 1
- Two or more races1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Unterborn
Unterborn 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
#153,769
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 106
-3 bearers (-2.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 13,013 places
2020
#154,182
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 103
-3 bearers (-2.8%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 413 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #140,756 | 109 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #153,769 | 106 | 0.04 | -3 bearers (-2.8%) | Down 13,013 places |
| 2020 | #154,182 | 103 | 0.03 | -3 bearers (-2.8%) | Down 413 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 Unterborn 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 | #154,182 | -0.3% |
| Count | 106 | 103 | -2.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -13.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Unterborn bearers went from 106 to 103 (-2.8% change). The surname moved down 413 positions in the national ranking, going from #153,769 to #154,182.
FAQ
Unterborn surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Unterborn?
Name Census estimates that about 118 living Americans carry the surname Unterborn. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,904,698 residents.
How common is Unterborn?
Unterborn ranks #154,182 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 103 people with the surname Unterborn. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (118), 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 Unterborn.
Has Unterborn become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Unterborn went from 106 recorded bearers to 103. That is a decrease of 3 (-2.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #153,769 to #154,182.
What does the Census say about the background of Unterborn?
Among Census respondents with the surname Unterborn, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (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 Unterborn in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.2% (97 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Unterborn appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.2%), Hispanic (3.9%), Asian/Pacific Islander (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 Unterborn (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 Unterborn mean?
A German surname meaning "from or of the lower village". 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 Unterborn (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 have the last name Unterborn?
See how many people have the surname Unterborn on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.