Explore the Family Name Gotthelf
The meaning of Gotthelf
1. German: from the personal name Gotthelf (literally ‘God’s help’), which was first recorded at the beginning of the 18th century; it was formed in imitation of older German male names but stressing a Christian (Protestant) attitude and became popular through the Pietist movement in Germany. In some cases at least, it was a late adoption as a surname; for instance, the Swiss minister and writer Albert Bitzius (1797–1854) dubbed himself Jeremias Gotthelf. 2. Jewish (Ashkenazic): artificial name with the same meaning as 1 above, from German Gott ‘God’ + Helfe ‘help’. Some characteristic forenames: Jewish Meyer.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Gotthelf in the United States?
Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the popularity of the surname Gotthelf seems to have slightly dropped in rank from 102,173 in 2000 to 107,134 in 2010. This represents a decrease of approximately 4.86%. However, it's noteworthy that the actual count of individuals bearing the Gotthelf name increased marginally by about 1.84% during this same period. The proportion of people with this surname per 100,000 didn’t see any change in this decade and stayed at 0.06.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #102,173 | #107,134 | -4.86% |
| Count | 163 | 166 | 1.84% |
| Proportion per 100k | 0.06 | 0.06 | 0% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Gotthelf
The ethnic identity associated with the Gotthelf surname saw some shifts between 2000 and 2010, based on the Decennial U.S. Census data. In 2000, nearly all (99.39%) identified as White, but this percentage decreased slightly to 96.39% by 2010. The most significant change was the introduction of the Hispanic identity category, which represented about 3.01% of Gotthelfs in 2010, while there were no Gotthelfs identifying as Hispanic in 2000. There were no recorded changes for the Asian/Pacific Islander, Two or more races, Black, and American Indian and Alaskan Native categories over this period.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 99.39% | 96.39% | -3.02% |
| Hispanic | 0% | 3.01% | 0% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Two or More Races | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Black | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0% | 0% | 0% |