Explore the Family Name Sommerfeld
The meaning of Sommerfeld
1. German: habitational name from any of several places so named. 2. German: topographic name from fields so named because they were cultivated only in the summer, from Middle High German sumer, Middle Low German somer ‘summer’ + velt ‘open country, field’. This surname (in any of the two possible senses; see also 1 above) is also found in Britain. 3. Jewish (Ashkenazic): artificial name composed of German Sommer ‘summer’ + Feld ‘field’. This surname is also found in Britain. Compare Summerfield. Some characteristic forenames: German Kurt, Otto, Detlef, Gerhard, Gunther, Helmut, Johannes, Reinhold, Wolfgang.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Sommerfeld in the United States?
The surname Sommerfeld, based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, has seen a mild decrease in popularity from 2000 to 2010. In 2000, it ranked 15,765th and fell slightly to 16,444th by the year 2010, a change of -4.31%. Despite the drop in rank, the actual count of people with the Sommerfeld surname increased by 2.94%, from 1,699 in 2000 to 1,749 in 2010. However, its proportion per 100,000 people saw a slight decrease of -6.35% over the same period.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #15,765 | #16,444 | -4.31% |
| Count | 1,699 | 1,749 | 2.94% |
| Proportion per 100k | 0.63 | 0.59 | -6.35% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Sommerfeld
As for the ethnic identity associated with the Sommerfeld surname, the Decennial U.S. Census data shows that the majority of individuals with this last name identified as White, although there was a minor decrease from 97.53% in 2000 to 96.00% in 2010. The percentage of Sommerfelds identifying as Hispanic showed a significant increase of 123.00%, albeit from a small base of 1.00% in 2000 to 2.23% in 2010. Those reporting as Asian/Pacific Islander decreased by -13.21%, while those claiming two or more races increased by 45.76%. There were no recorded instances of Sommerfelds identifying as Black, American Indian or Alaskan Native in either census year.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 97.53% | 96% | -1.57% |
| Hispanic | 1% | 2.23% | 123% |
| Two or More Races | 0.59% | 0.86% | 45.76% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 0.53% | 0.46% | -13.21% |
| Black | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0% | 0% | 0% |