2000
#3,860
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,450
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.13
Rare Last name
Vetter
A German occupational surname referring to a cousin or kinsman, or a person who acted as a guarantor.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 9,286 Americans carry the last name Vetter. That puts it at #4,231 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.71 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 36,911 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Vetter 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
9.3K
1 in 36,911
Census rank
#4,231
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
8.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 8,098 bearers of the surname Vetter in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.71 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4231st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Vetter, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Vetter
The surname Vetter originated in Germany, with its earliest known records dating back to the 12th century. It is derived from the Middle High German word "veter," which means "paternal uncle" or "father's brother." This term likely emerged from the Old High German word "fatureo," which has a similar meaning.
The Vetter surname was initially concentrated in the regions of Bavaria and Swabia in southern Germany. It was often associated with families or individuals who had a close kinship bond, particularly those related through a paternal uncle or aunt.
One of the earliest known references to the Vetter name can be found in the Codex Traditionum Monasterii Eberspergensis, a historical manuscript from the Ebersberg Abbey in Bavaria, dating back to the late 12th century. This document mentions a "Heinricus Vetter" as a witness to a land transaction.
In the 14th century, the Vetter surname appeared in various historical records, such as the Würzburger Lehnbücher (Würzburg Feudal Records) and the Stadtbücher von Nürnberg (City Books of Nuremberg). These records often referred to individuals with the Vetter name as landowners, merchants, or craftsmen.
Notable individuals with the Vetter surname throughout history include:
1. Konrad Vetter (c. 1450-1520), a German humanist and scholar who taught at the University of Heidelberg.
2. Johann Vetter (1480-1541), a German Renaissance painter and wood carver from Nuremberg.
3. Salomon Vetter (1723-1806), a German theologian and professor at the University of Wittenberg.
4. Abraham Vetter (1789-1859), a German-American Lutheran minister and pioneer settler in Ohio.
5. Carl Christian Vetter (1861-1936), a German architect and urban planner known for his work in Berlin.
The Vetter surname has also been associated with various place names in Germany, such as Vettershausen, Vettersweil, and Vetterweis, which likely originated from families or individuals bearing this surname in those areas.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Vetter
Among Census respondents with the surname Vetter, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Vetter 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 Vetter surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.8% · 7,518
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 233
- Two or more races2.4% · 193
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 68
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 48
- Black or African American0.5% · 38
Timeline
Historical Census data for Vetter
Vetter 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
#4,142
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,550
+100 bearers (+1.2%)
Per 100,000 2.90
Rank movement Down 282 places
2020
#4,231
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,098
-452 bearers (-5.3%)
Per 100,000 2.71
Rank movement Down 89 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,860 | 8,450 | 3.13 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,142 | 8,550 | 2.90 | +100 bearers (+1.2%) | Down 282 places |
| 2020 | #4,231 | 8,098 | 2.71 | -452 bearers (-5.3%) | Down 89 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 Vetter 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 | #4,142 | #4,231 | -2.1% |
| Count | 8,550 | 8,098 | -5.3% |
| Per 100K | 2.90 | 2.71 | -6.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Vetter bearers went from 8,550 to 8,098 (-5.3% change). The surname moved down 89 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,142 to #4,231.
FAQ
Vetter surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Vetter?
Name Census estimates that about 9,286 living Americans carry the surname Vetter. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 36,911 residents.
How common is Vetter?
Vetter ranks #4,231 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.71 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 8,098 people with the surname Vetter. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (9,286), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.71 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.71 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Vetter.
Has Vetter become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Vetter went from 8,550 recorded bearers to 8,098. That is a decrease of 452 (-5.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #4,142 to #4,231.
What does the Census say about the background of Vetter?
Among Census respondents with the surname Vetter, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.4%). 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 Vetter in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.8% (7,518 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Vetter appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.8%), Hispanic (2.9%), Two or More Races (2.4%). 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 Vetter (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 Vetter mean?
A German occupational surname referring to a cousin or kinsman, or a person who acted as a guarantor. 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 Vetter (2.71 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 Vetter?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.