Explore the Family Name Sonnenfeld

The meaning of Sonnenfeld

German: topographic name for someone who lived by or farmed a south-facing area of land, from Middle High German, Middle Low German sunne, sonne ‘sun’ + Middle High German, Middle Low German velt ‘field, open country’. Some characteristic forenames: German Erwin, Heinz, Kurt, Erna, Otto, Rainer.

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

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

Based on the data from the Decennial U.S. Census, the popularity of the surname Sonnenfeld has seen a slight increase between 2000 and 2010. In the year 2000, it was ranked 49,057th in terms of commonality, but by 2010 it had risen slightly to 48,800th place, marking a 0.52% change. The number of people bearing this surname also grew during this period, with a count of 403 in 2000 and 432 in 2010, representing an increase of 7.2%. Despite these changes, the proportion of the population with the Sonnenfeld surname remained steady at 0.15 per 100,000 individuals.

	2000	2010	Change
Rank	#49,057	#48,800	0.52%
Count	403	432	7.2%
Proportion per 100k	0.15	0.15	0%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Sonnenfeld

In regards to ethnicity, the Decennial U.S. Census data reveals that the majority of individuals with the Sonnenfeld surname identified as White in both 2000 and 2010, though there was a slight decrease from 97.52% to 96.06%. The number of those identifying as having two or more races saw an increase, rising from 0% in 2000 to 1.39% in 2010. No individuals with this surname identified as Asian/Pacific Islander, Hispanic, or Black in either year. Those identifying as American Indian and Alaskan Native decreased from 1.24% in 2000 to none in 2010.

	2000	2010	Change
White	97.52%	96.06%	-1.5%
Two or More Races	0%	1.39%	0%
Asian/Pacific Islander	0%	0%	0%
Hispanic	0%	0%	0%
Black	0%	0%	0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native	1.24%	0%	0%