2000
#6,382
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,912
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.82
Rare Last name
Wingard
An occupational surname for a guard or watchman, derived from the Middle English "wyndgard" meaning "wind guard."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,433 Americans carry the last name Wingard. That puts it at #6,828 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.59 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 63,087 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Wingard 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
5.4K
1 in 63,087
Census rank
#6,828
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,738 bearers of the surname Wingard in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.59 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6828th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Wingard, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.0%. The next largest groups are Black (9.9%) and Two or More Races (3.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Wingard
The surname Wingard is believed to have originated in Germany, specifically in the region of Bavaria. It is thought to have derived from the Old German words "win" meaning "friend" and "gard" meaning "enclosure" or "garden." The name likely referred to someone who owned or worked in a vineyard or garden.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Wingard can be found in the Codex Traditionum Monasterii Sancti Stephani in Würzburg, a medieval manuscript from the 9th century, where it appears as "Winingardus." This suggests that the name was present in the region during the Carolingian era.
In the 11th century, a nobleman named Winingardus von Rothenburg was mentioned in the Annales Fuldenses, a chronicle of the Fulda Abbey. This indicates that the name had spread to other parts of Germany by that time.
During the High and Late Middle Ages, various spellings of the name emerged, including Wingardt, Wingert, and Wingardus. These variations were often associated with specific locations, such as the town of Wingart in Bavaria.
One notable historical figure with the surname Wingard was Johann Wingard (1542-1617), a German theologian and reformer who was a prominent figure in the Protestant Reformation. He served as a professor at the University of Wittenberg and was a close associate of Martin Luther.
Another individual of note was Hans Wingard (1575-1642), a German artist and engraver who was known for his detailed etchings and woodcuts depicting landscapes and architectural scenes.
In the 17th century, the surname Wingard appeared in the records of the Palatinate region of Germany, with several families bearing the name residing in towns such as Heidelberg and Mannheim.
During the 18th century, the surname Wingard began to spread beyond Germany, with some families emigrating to other parts of Europe and North America. One example is Johann Wilhelm Wingard (1720-1798), a German-born farmer who settled in Pennsylvania in the mid-1700s and established a family line in the United States.
Throughout the 19th century, the Wingard surname continued to be present in various regions of Germany, as well as in German-speaking communities in other countries. Notable individuals from this period include Carl Wingard (1812-1892), a German-American artist and lithographer known for his portraiture work.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Wingard
Among Census respondents with the surname Wingard, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.0%. The next largest groups are Black (9.9%) and Two or More Races (3.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Wingard 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 Wingard surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.0% · 3,979
- Black or African American9.9% · 471
- Two or more races3.0% · 143
- Hispanic or Latino2.2% · 104
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 23
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 18
Timeline
Historical Census data for Wingard
Wingard 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
#6,766
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,983
+71 bearers (+1.4%)
Per 100,000 1.69
Rank movement Down 384 places
2020
#6,828
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,738
-245 bearers (-4.9%)
Per 100,000 1.59
Rank movement Down 62 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,382 | 4,912 | 1.82 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,766 | 4,983 | 1.69 | +71 bearers (+1.4%) | Down 384 places |
| 2020 | #6,828 | 4,738 | 1.59 | -245 bearers (-4.9%) | Down 62 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 Wingard 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 | #6,766 | #6,828 | -0.9% |
| Count | 4,983 | 4,738 | -4.9% |
| Per 100K | 1.69 | 1.59 | -6.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Wingard bearers went from 4,983 to 4,738 (-4.9% change). The surname moved down 62 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,766 to #6,828.
FAQ
Wingard surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Wingard?
Name Census estimates that about 5,433 living Americans carry the surname Wingard. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 63,087 residents.
How common is Wingard?
Wingard ranks #6,828 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.59 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 4,738 people with the surname Wingard. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,433), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.59 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.59 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Wingard.
Has Wingard become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Wingard went from 4,983 recorded bearers to 4,738. That is a decrease of 245 (-4.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #6,766 to #6,828.
What does the Census say about the background of Wingard?
Among Census respondents with the surname Wingard, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.0%. The next largest groups are Black (9.9%) and Two or More Races (3.0%). 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 Wingard in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.0% (3,979 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Wingard appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (84.0%), Black (9.9%), Two or More Races (3.0%). 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 Wingard (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 Wingard mean?
An occupational surname for a guard or watchman, derived from the Middle English "wyndgard" meaning "wind guard." 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 Wingard (1.59 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 Wingard?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.