Wolfgang Petersen
There are approximately 1 people named Wolfgang Petersen living in the United States today. That makes this name combination very rare, occurring at a rate of about 1 in 342,754,338 Americans.
This estimate combines SSA birth records for the first name Wolfgang with Census Bureau frequency data for the surname Petersen. Below you will find a breakdown of both names, including popularity trends, gender data, and ancestry information.
Expected bearers
1
1 in 342,754,338
Named Wolfgang
3.0K
Alive today
Named Petersen
68K
Alive today
US population
343M
Denominator
Estimated living: 3.0K
Rarity: Rare
Gender: Male
Peak year: 2021
Average age: 20
Estimated bearers: 68K
Rarity: Uncommon
Census rank: #571
Per 100K: 19.83
Top ancestry: White (93.4%)
First name trend
Wolfgang: popularity over time
Year-by-year SSA birth registrations for the first name Wolfgang. The peak year was 2021 with 148 births. The average person named Wolfgang today is 20 years old.
Babies born per year
Ethnicity
Ancestry of the Petersen surname
Self-reported race and ethnicity breakdown for people with the surname Petersen, from the 2010 US Census Bureau. The largest group is White at 93.4%.
- White93.4%
- Hispanic or Latino2.5%
- Two or more races1.6%
- Black or African American1.3%
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8%
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4%
Methodology
How we calculated this
The first name Wolfgang has a living-bearer frequency of 0.0009% of the US population, based on 2,995 estimated living Americans carrying this first name (from SSA birth records going back to 1880, adjusted for mortality using CDC life tables).
The surname Petersen appears at a rate of 19.83 per 100,000 residents in the 2010 Census Bureau surname file, which translates to a frequency of 0.0198%.
Multiplying these two independent frequencies against the current US population of 342,754,338 gives an expected count of approximately 1 people with the full name Wolfgang Petersen. This assumes statistical independence between first and last names, which is a simplification but produces reasonable estimates for most combinations.
Related
Other people with the surname Petersen
FAQ
Wolfgang Petersen: questions and answers
How many people are named Wolfgang Petersen?
We estimate approximately 1 people in the United States share the full name Wolfgang Petersen. That works out to about 1 in 342,754,338 Americans. This is calculated by combining the first-name frequency (0.0009%) with the surname frequency (19.83 per 100K) against the current US population.
How rare is the name Wolfgang Petersen?
We classify Wolfgang Petersen as "Very Rare". About 1 in 342,754,338 Americans share this exact first and last name combination.
Is Wolfgang a male or female name?
Wolfgang is predominantly male. Out of 3,104 total SSA registrations, 100.0% were male and 0.0% were female. See the full Wolfgang profile for detailed gender data.
Where does this data come from?
First-name data comes from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files (1880 to 2024). Surname data comes from the 2010 US Census Bureau decennial surname tables. Living-bearer estimates use CDC actuarial life tables to adjust for mortality. Read the full methodology.