2000
#9,105
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,299
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.22
Rare Last name
Zellner
A German occupational surname referring to a person who collected tolls or taxes, derived from the German word "Zöllner."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,734 Americans carry the last name Zellner. That puts it at #9,548 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.09 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 91,793 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Zellner 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
3.7K
1 in 91,793
Census rank
#9,548
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,256 bearers of the surname Zellner in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.09 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9548th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Zellner, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.1%. The next largest groups are Black (14.0%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Zellner
The surname Zellner originated in the German states of Bavaria and Saxony during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the German word "Zoll," which means "toll" or "customs duty." The name likely referred to someone who worked as a toll collector or customs officer.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname Zellner can be found in medieval German records and documents from the 13th and 14th centuries. One notable example is a mention of a "Johannes Zollner" in a 1297 legal document from the city of Nuremberg.
The name Zellner is also closely linked to various place names in Germany, such as Zell, Zella, and Zellenberg. These place names often referred to locations near toll stations or customs posts. In some cases, the surname may have originated as a locative name, indicating a person's place of origin or residence.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the surname Zellner. One of the earliest was Hans Zellner (c. 1450-1522), a German painter and engraver active in Nuremberg during the Renaissance. Another was Johann Zellner (1596-1662), a German mathematician and astronomer who made significant contributions to the development of logarithms.
In the 19th century, Gustav Zellner (1823-1901) was a German-American architect who designed several prominent buildings in New York City, including the New York Historical Society building. Around the same time, Karl Alfred von Zittel (1839-1904), a German paleontologist and geologist, was born with the surname Zittel but later changed it to Zellner.
More recently, Harriet Zellner (1909-2001) was an American artist and printmaker known for her abstract works, while Jonathan Zellner (born 1967) is a contemporary American filmmaker and producer.
While the surname Zellner has its roots in German-speaking regions, it has since spread to other parts of the world through immigration and migration. However, the core meaning and historical significance of the name remain tied to its origins as a reference to toll collection or customs duties in medieval Germany.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Zellner
Among Census respondents with the surname Zellner, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.1%. The next largest groups are Black (14.0%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Zellner 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 Zellner surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White78.1% · 2,542
- Black or African American14.0% · 456
- Two or more races4.0% · 130
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 94
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 25
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.3% · 9
Timeline
Historical Census data for Zellner
Zellner 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
#9,511
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,417
+118 bearers (+3.6%)
Per 100,000 1.16
Rank movement Down 406 places
2020
#9,548
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,256
-161 bearers (-4.7%)
Per 100,000 1.09
Rank movement Down 37 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,105 | 3,299 | 1.22 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #9,511 | 3,417 | 1.16 | +118 bearers (+3.6%) | Down 406 places |
| 2020 | #9,548 | 3,256 | 1.09 | -161 bearers (-4.7%) | Down 37 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 Zellner 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 | #9,511 | #9,548 | -0.4% |
| Count | 3,417 | 3,256 | -4.7% |
| Per 100K | 1.16 | 1.09 | -6.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Zellner bearers went from 3,417 to 3,256 (-4.7% change). The surname moved down 37 positions in the national ranking, going from #9,511 to #9,548.
FAQ
Zellner surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Zellner?
Name Census estimates that about 3,734 living Americans carry the surname Zellner. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 91,793 residents.
How common is Zellner?
Zellner ranks #9,548 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.09 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 3,256 people with the surname Zellner. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,734), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.09 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.09 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 Zellner.
Has Zellner become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Zellner went from 3,417 recorded bearers to 3,256. That is a decrease of 161 (-4.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #9,511 to #9,548.
What does the Census say about the background of Zellner?
Among Census respondents with the surname Zellner, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.1%. The next largest groups are Black (14.0%) and Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Zellner in the 2020 Census, accounting for 78.1% (2,542 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Zellner appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (78.1%), Black (14.0%), Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Zellner (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 Zellner mean?
A German occupational surname referring to a person who collected tolls or taxes, derived from the German word "Zöllner." 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 Zellner (1.09 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 Zellner?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.