2000
#13,943
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,985
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.74
Rare Last name
Weirich
Derived from a Germanic personal name composed of the elements "wig" meaning "battle" and "rīc" meaning "powerful."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,412 Americans carry the last name Weirich. That puts it at #13,774 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.70 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 142,104 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Weirich 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
2.4K
1 in 142,104
Census rank
#13,774
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,103 bearers of the surname Weirich in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.70 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13774th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Weirich, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.8%) and Two or More Races (2.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Weirich
The surname WEIRICH is of German origin, dating back to the medieval period. It is believed to have originated in the regions of Bavaria and Saxony, where it was first recorded in the 13th century.
The name WEIRICH is derived from the Germanic root words "weih" and "ric," which together mean "consecrated ruler" or "holy ruler." This suggests that the name may have been bestowed upon someone who held a prominent position within the church or religious hierarchy.
One of the earliest known instances of the name WEIRICH can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae, a collection of medieval documents from the region of Saxony. In this codex, a certain Weirich von Meissen is mentioned in a charter dated 1236.
Another notable early bearer of the name was Weirich von Bamberg, a German cleric and scholar who lived in the 13th century. He was known for his writings on theology and canon law.
During the 15th century, the name WEIRICH appeared in various records from the city of Nuremberg. One such record, the Nuremberg Standbuch, mentions a merchant named Hans Weirich who was active in the city's trade guild.
In the 16th century, a notable figure bearing the WEIRICH name was Johann Weirich, a German theologian and reformer who was a supporter of Martin Luther's Protestant Reformation. He was born in 1495 and died in 1573.
Another prominent individual with the surname WEIRICH was Johann Gottfried Weirich, a German composer and organist who lived from 1725 to 1796. He was known for his contributions to sacred music and his work as a church musician in Leipzig.
Throughout history, the WEIRICH name has also been associated with various places and geographic features. For example, the village of Weirich in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate is believed to have been named after an early bearer of the surname.
Overall, the surname WEIRICH has a rich history rooted in medieval Germany, with connections to religion, scholarship, and commerce. Despite its Germanic origins, the name has since spread to other parts of the world, carried by various descendants and immigrants.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Weirich
Among Census respondents with the surname Weirich, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.8%) and Two or More Races (2.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Weirich 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 Weirich surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.8% · 1,951
- Hispanic or Latino3.8% · 79
- Two or more races2.4% · 50
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 20
- Black or African American0.1% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Weirich
Weirich 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
#14,257
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,102
+117 bearers (+5.9%)
Per 100,000 0.71
Rank movement Down 314 places
2020
#13,774
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,103
+1 bearers (+0.0%)
Per 100,000 0.70
Rank movement Up 483 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,943 | 1,985 | 0.74 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #14,257 | 2,102 | 0.71 | +117 bearers (+5.9%) | Down 314 places |
| 2020 | #13,774 | 2,103 | 0.70 | +1 bearers (+0.0%) | Up 483 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 Weirich 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 | #14,257 | #13,774 | 3.4% |
| Count | 2,102 | 2,103 | 0.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.71 | 0.70 | -0.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Weirich bearers went from 2,102 to 2,103 (+0.0% change). The surname moved up 483 positions in the national ranking, going from #14,257 to #13,774.
FAQ
Weirich surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Weirich?
Name Census estimates that about 2,412 living Americans carry the surname Weirich. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 142,104 residents.
How common is Weirich?
Weirich ranks #13,774 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.70 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 2,103 people with the surname Weirich. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,412), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.7 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.70 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 Weirich.
Has Weirich become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Weirich went from 2,102 recorded bearers to 2,103. That is an increase of 1 (+0.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #14,257 to #13,774.
What does the Census say about the background of Weirich?
Among Census respondents with the surname Weirich, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.8%) 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 Weirich in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.8% (1,951 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Weirich appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.8%), Hispanic (3.8%), 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 Weirich (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 Weirich mean?
Derived from a Germanic personal name composed of the elements "wig" meaning "battle" and "rīc" meaning "powerful." 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 Weirich (0.70 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 Weirich?
Find out how many Americans have the surname Weirich on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.