How common is the surname Greenberg?

20,897 people in the United States had the surname Greenberg in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 14,775 Americans. It ranked 1,720th of 162,253 surnames.

What ethnicity is the surname Greenberg?

In the 2010 Census, 95% of people named Greenberg identified as white (not Hispanic), and 2.4% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).

Who is the most famous person named Greenberg?

Joseph Greenberg, American linguist, followed by Bryan Greenberg.

Where is the surname Greenberg most common?

Wikidata records people named Greenberg in the United States, Israel and Canada.

Is the surname Greenberg getting more or less common?

Less common. 20,908 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 20,897 in 2010, down 0.1%.

The surname Greenberg

A surname, carried by 20,897 people in the United States.

2 syllables Soundex G651

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Greenberg is more common than 98.9% of them.

Origin

A surname.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 20,897 people named Greenberg in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 14,775 Americans. That is about the same as in 2000, when the Census counted 20,908.

#1,720

rank among US surnames

20,897

people in 2010

7.1

per 100,000 Americans

-0.1%

change since 2000 (was #1,574)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#1,711	Brito	21,007	14,697
#1,712	Lanier	20,997	14,704
#1,713	Zarate	20,992	14,708
#1,714	Major	20,977	14,718
#1,715	Escamilla	20,958	14,732
#1,716	Otero	20,937	14,746
#1,717	Henley	20,934	14,749

Who is named Greenberg

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

95% of people named Greenberg identified as white (not Hispanic), 2.4% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).

White (not Hispanic) 95%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.4%
Two or more races 1.0%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.8%
Black (not Hispanic) 0.3%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.1%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Greenbergs

16 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

Joseph Greenberg
American linguist, 1915–2001
Bryan Greenberg
American actor and musician, born 1978
Clement Greenberg
American essayist and visual art critic (1909-1994)
Hank Greenberg
Baseball outfielder (1911–1986)
Joanne Greenberg
American writer, born 1932
Adam Greenberg
American cinematographer (1937–2025)
Brooke Greenberg
American Syndrome X patient (1993–2013)
Gerald B. Greenberg
American film editor (1936-2017)
Jill Greenberg
American photographer, born 1967
Jay Greenberg
American composer, born 1991
Richard Greenberg
American playwright and television writer (1958–2025)
Martin H. Greenberg
American speculative fiction anthologist and political scientist (1941-2011)

Notable Greenbergs come mostly from the United States (14), Israel (1) and Canada (1).

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Surnames that sound like Greenberg

Greenberg has the Soundex code G651, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code G651.

Questions

How common is the surname Greenberg?: 20,897 people in the United States had the surname Greenberg in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 14,775 Americans. It ranked 1,720th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Greenberg?: In the 2010 Census, 95% of people named Greenberg identified as white (not Hispanic), and 2.4% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).
Who is the most famous person named Greenberg?: Joseph Greenberg, American linguist, followed by Bryan Greenberg.
Where is the surname Greenberg most common?: Wikidata records people named Greenberg in the United States, Israel and Canada.
Is the surname Greenberg getting more or less common?: Less common. 20,908 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 20,897 in 2010, down 0.1%.