Explore the Family Name Philhower

The meaning of Philhower

Americanized form of German Vielhauer: occupational name for a file maker, from Middle High German vīle ‘file’ + an agent derivative of houwen ‘to chop or cut’.

Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.

How common is the last name Philhower in the United States?

Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the surname Philhower saw a rise in popularity between 2000 and 2010. The rank of this surname moved up from 28,142 to 27,646, indicating an increase of about 1.76%. In numerical terms, the count of individuals bearing the Philhower name increased by 8.61%, from 801 in 2000 to 870 in 2010. However, as a proportion per 100,000 people, there was a slight decrease of -3.33%.

20002010Change
Rank#28,142#27,6461.76%
Count8018708.61%
Proportion per 100k0.30.29-3.33%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Philhower

In terms of ethnicity, the Decennial U.S. Census data highlights changes in the ethnic identity of those carrying the Philhower surname. In 2000, nearly all (98.13%) identified as White, but this percentage marginally reduced to 95.52% by 2010. During the same time period, the percentage of Philhowers identifying with two or more races significantly increased from 0.75% to 1.95%. Similarly, those identifying as Hispanic rose from 0.87% in 2000 to 1.95% in 2010. There were no reported individuals of Asian/Pacific Islander, Black, or American Indian and Alaskan Native descent in either year.

20002010Change
White98.13%95.52%-2.66%
Two or More Races0.75%1.95%160%
Hispanic0.87%1.95%124.14%
Asian/Pacific Islander0%0%0%
Black0%0%0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0%0%0%