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    The surname German

    A surname, carried by 16,661 people in the United States.

    Pronounced /ˈd͡ʒɝ.mən/ 2 syllables Soundex G655 Also a first name

    German: #2,182 of 162,253 surnames in the 2010 US Census #1Smith#160,975Doriott#10Martinez#100Jimenez#10,001Dubon German #2,182, 16,661 people German: #2,182 of 162,253 surnames in the 2010 US Census #1Smith#160,975Doriott#100Jimenez German #2,182, 16,661 people
    Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). German is more common than 98.7% of them.

    Origin

    From Latin Germānus, Germānī (“the peoples of Germānia”), as distinct from Gauls (in the writings of Caesar and Tacitus), and of uncertain ultimate origin (possibly Celtic/Gaulish). Not related to german (“closely related”) or germane (from the Latin adjective germānus, through Old French). Attested since at least 1520. Replaced the older terms Almain and Dutch (from Proto-Germanic *þiudiskaz) in English. Besides cognates of German, Almain, and Dutch, two other categories of words for the Germans in other languages are cognates of Saxon and descendants of Proto-Slavic *němьcь; see those entries for more. The surname is generally from the noun, though sometimes confused with Herman, Hermann under Russian influence. As a German surname, Americanized from Germann. Compare Germán, Germain, Jerman.

    Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

    How common it is

    2010 US Census

    There were 16,661 people named German in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 18,531 Americans. That is up 13% since 2000, when the Census counted 14,769.

    #2,182
    rank among US surnames
    16,661
    people in 2010
    5.7
    per 100,000 Americans
    +12.8%
    change since 2000 (was #2,260)
    RankSurnamePeople1 in
    #2,173Maguire16,71318,473
    #2,174Doran16,70418,483
    #2,175Calloway16,68918,500
    #2,177Purvis16,68618,503
    #2,179Acuna16,68318,507
    #2,180Ulrich16,66818,523
    #2,181Chau16,66718,524

    Who is named German

    Race and Hispanic origin as people reported it in the 2010 Census

    59% of people named German identified as white (not Hispanic), 24% as Hispanic or Latino (any race) and 14% as Black (not Hispanic).

    • White (not Hispanic) 59%
    • Hispanic or Latino (any race) 24%
    • Black (not Hispanic) 14%
    • Two or more races 1.3%
    • Asian and Pacific Islander 0.9%
    • American Indian and Alaska Native 0.9%

    Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

    Famous Germans

    1 notable person on Wikidata, most written-about first

    • Lauren German
      American actress, born 1978

    Spellings and sound-alikes

    Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

    Surnames that sound like German

    German has the Soundex code G655, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code G655.

    Questions

    Where does the surname German come from?
    From Latin Germānus, Germānī (“the peoples of Germānia”), as distinct from Gauls (in the writings of Caesar and Tacitus), and of uncertain ultimate origin (possibly Celtic/Gaulish). Not related to german (“closely related”) or germane (from the Latin adjective germānus, through Old French).…
    How common is the surname German?
    16,661 people in the United States had the surname German in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 18,531 Americans. It ranked 2,182nd of 162,253 surnames.
    What ethnicity is the surname German?
    In the 2010 Census, 59% of people named German identified as white (not Hispanic), and 24% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).
    Who is the most famous person named German?
    Lauren German, American actress.
    Where is the surname German most common?
    Wikidata records people named German in the United States.
    How do you pronounce German?
    German is /ˈd͡ʒɝ.mən/, 2 syllables.
    Is the surname German getting more or less common?
    More common. 14,769 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 16,661 in 2010, up 13%.
    Is German also a first name?
    Yes. German is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.