2000
#142,819
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Wehland
A surname of German origin meaning "from the meadows".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 114 Americans carry the last name Wehland. That puts it at #156,005 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 3,006,617 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Wehland 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
114
1 in 3,006,617
Census rank
#156,005
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
99
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 99 bearers of the surname Wehland in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 156005th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Wehland, the largest self-reported group is White at 100.0%.
Origin
Meaning and origin of Wehland
The surname Wehland originates from Germany, with records dating back to the 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the Low German word "wehlen," meaning "to choose" or "to select," suggesting that the name may have been given to someone who had the occupation of a selector or sorter. Alternatively, it could have been derived from a place name containing the word "wehlen."
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Wehland can be found in the church records of the town of Wernigerode in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany, where a Johann Wehland was mentioned in 1568. Another early reference is from the town of Hildesheim in Lower Saxony, where a Hans Wehland was recorded in 1596.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the Wehland name appeared in various regions of Germany, including Saxony, Thuringia, and Brandenburg. Notably, a Johann Christoph Wehland (1663-1727) from Saxony was a renowned composer and organist during the Baroque period.
As the German population migrated to other parts of the world, the Wehland surname spread to other countries. In the United States, one of the earliest recorded instances of the name is from Pennsylvania, where a Johannes Wehland arrived from Germany in 1748.
Another notable individual with the Wehland surname was Karl Wehland (1873-1954), a German writer and journalist who was active in the early 20th century. He is known for his works on cultural and literary topics.
Other individuals of historical significance with the Wehland surname include:
1. Friedrich Wehland (1813-1883), a German philosopher and theologian from Saxony.
2. Otto Wehland (1849-1929), a German architect and urban planner from Saxony.
3. Gustav Wehland (1881-1942), a German politician and member of the Reichstag from Mecklenburg-Schwerin.
4. Erich Wehland (1896-1982), a German opera singer and actor from Saxony.
5. Hans Wehland (1909-1989), a German engineer and inventor from Brandenburg.
While the Wehland surname is not among the most common in Germany or other countries, it has a rich history dating back several centuries, with individuals bearing this name making notable contributions in various fields.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Wehland
Among Census respondents with the surname Wehland, the largest self-reported group is White at 100.0%.
The bar chart below shows how Wehland 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 Wehland surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White100.0% · 99
Timeline
Historical Census data for Wehland
Wehland 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
#132,206
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 128
+21 bearers (+19.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 10,613 places
2020
#156,005
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 99
-29 bearers (-22.7%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 23,799 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #142,819 | 107 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #132,206 | 128 | 0.04 | +21 bearers (+19.6%) | Up 10,613 places |
| 2020 | #156,005 | 99 | 0.03 | -29 bearers (-22.7%) | Down 23,799 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 Wehland 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 | #132,206 | #156,005 | -18.0% |
| Count | 128 | 99 | -22.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -17.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Wehland bearers went from 128 to 99 (-22.7% change). The surname moved down 23,799 positions in the national ranking, going from #132,206 to #156,005.
FAQ
Wehland surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Wehland?
Name Census estimates that about 114 living Americans carry the surname Wehland. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 3,006,617 residents.
How common is Wehland?
Wehland ranks #156,005 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 99 people with the surname Wehland. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (114), 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 Wehland.
Has Wehland become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Wehland went from 128 recorded bearers to 99. That is a decrease of 29 (-22.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #132,206 to #156,005.
What does the Census say about the background of Wehland?
Among Census respondents with the surname Wehland, the largest self-reported group is White at 100.0%. 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 Wehland in the 2020 Census, accounting for 100.0% (99 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Wehland appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (100.0%). 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 Wehland (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 Wehland mean?
A surname of German origin meaning "from the meadows". 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 Wehland (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 common is the surname Wehland?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people are called Wehland at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.