2000
#122,534
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 130
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Wetterhahn
A German surname derived from the words "wetter" meaning weather and "hahn" meaning rooster or cock, symbolizing a weather vane.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 136 Americans carry the last name Wetterhahn. That puts it at #142,788 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,520,252 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Wetterhahn 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
136
1 in 2,520,252
Census rank
#142,788
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
119
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 119 bearers of the surname Wetterhahn in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 142788th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Wetterhahn, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.0%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Wetterhahn
The surname Wetterhahn has its origins in Germany, with the earliest records dating back to the late 16th century. It is believed to have originated from the northern German regions, particularly in areas such as Mecklenburg and Pomerania. The name is derived from the German words "Wetter," meaning weather, and "Hahn," meaning rooster or cock, likely referring to a weathervane or weather cock.
One of the earliest known bearers of this surname was Hans Wetterhahn, a merchant from Rostock, who was mentioned in records from the late 1500s. Another early record is of a Johannes Wetterhahn, a farmer from the village of Gnoien in Mecklenburg, whose name appeared in a land registry from the early 17th century.
The name Wetterhahn can also be found in some historical manuscripts and records, such as the "Kirchenbücher" (church books) of various German parishes, which documented baptisms, marriages, and burials. These records provide valuable insights into the distribution and prevalence of the name throughout the centuries.
Variations of the surname Wetterhahn existed, including Wetterhahn, Wetterhane, and Wetterhahn. These variations likely arose due to regional dialects and differences in spelling conventions over time. Additionally, some records may have referenced place names containing the word "Wetterhahn," such as the village of Wetterhahn in Rhineland-Palatinate.
Notable individuals with the surname Wetterhahn include:
1. Johann Wetterhahn (1572-1638), a German composer and organist from Saxony.
2. Friedrich Wilhelm Wetterhahn (1739-1811), a German jurist and legal scholar from Brandenburg.
3. August Wetterhahn (1808-1877), a German-American farmer and pioneer settler in Texas.
4. Carl Wetterhahn (1861-1934), a German-American architect who designed several notable buildings in Chicago.
5. Ulrike Wetterhahn (1943-1997), a German-American chemist and professor at Ohio State University, known for her work on toxic metal exposure.
These examples showcase the historical presence and distribution of the Wetterhahn surname across various regions of Germany and beyond, spanning several centuries and encompassing diverse professions and achievements.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Wetterhahn
Among Census respondents with the surname Wetterhahn, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.0%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Wetterhahn 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 Wetterhahn surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.1% · 112
- Two or more races5.0% · 6
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Wetterhahn
Wetterhahn 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
#129,825
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 131
+1 bearers (+0.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 7,291 places
2020
#142,788
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 119
-12 bearers (-9.2%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 12,963 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #122,534 | 130 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #129,825 | 131 | 0.04 | +1 bearers (+0.8%) | Down 7,291 places |
| 2020 | #142,788 | 119 | 0.04 | -12 bearers (-9.2%) | Down 12,963 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 Wetterhahn 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 | #129,825 | #142,788 | -10.0% |
| Count | 131 | 119 | -9.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -0.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Wetterhahn bearers went from 131 to 119 (-9.2% change). The surname moved down 12,963 positions in the national ranking, going from #129,825 to #142,788.
FAQ
Wetterhahn surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Wetterhahn?
Name Census estimates that about 136 living Americans carry the surname Wetterhahn. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,520,252 residents.
How common is Wetterhahn?
Wetterhahn ranks #142,788 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 119 people with the surname Wetterhahn. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (136), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Wetterhahn.
Has Wetterhahn become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Wetterhahn went from 131 recorded bearers to 119. That is a decrease of 12 (-9.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #129,825 to #142,788.
What does the Census say about the background of Wetterhahn?
Among Census respondents with the surname Wetterhahn, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.0%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.8%). 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 Wetterhahn in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.1% (112 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Wetterhahn appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.1%), Two or More Races (5.0%), Asian/Pacific Islander (0.8%). 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 Wetterhahn (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 Wetterhahn mean?
A German surname derived from the words "wetter" meaning weather and "hahn" meaning rooster or cock, symbolizing a weather vane. 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 Wetterhahn (0.04 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 Americans have the surname Wetterhahn?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.