2000
#4,822
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,683
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.48
Rare Last name
Bechtel
A German occupational surname referring to a baker or someone who bakes bread and cakes.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 7,266 Americans carry the last name Bechtel. That puts it at #5,308 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.12 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 47,172 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Bechtel surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
7.3K
1 in 47,172
Census rank
#5,308
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
6.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 6,336 bearers of the surname Bechtel in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.12 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5308th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Bechtel, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.1%) and Hispanic (3.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Bechtel
The surname Bechtel is of German origin, derived from the Old German word "bach" meaning "stream" or "brook". It is believed to have originated in the 12th century as a topographic name, referring to someone who lived near a stream or small river.
The name Bechtel is first recorded in medieval records from the region of Swabia in southwestern Germany, where the earliest known bearers of the name can be traced back to the 13th century. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name is found in the town of Ravensburg, where a certain Heinricus Bechtel is mentioned in a document from 1295.
During the Middle Ages, the name Bechtel also appeared in various old manuscripts and records from other parts of southern Germany, such as Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg. In some instances, the name was spelled differently, such as "Bechtel", "Bechtil", or "Bechtold".
While there are no notable historical figures bearing the surname Bechtel in medieval times, the name began to gain prominence in the early modern period. One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Johann Bechtel (1555-1619), a German theologian and writer from Nuremberg.
Another notable figure was Georg Bechtel (1638-1700), a German architect and master builder who worked on several important projects in the city of Ulm, including the famous Ulm Minster. His son, Johann Georg Bechtel (1673-1743), followed in his footsteps and became a respected architect in his own right.
In the 18th century, the name Bechtel can be found in various records from the German-speaking regions of Europe, including the Palatinate and Alsace. One notable bearer of the name from this period was Johann Philipp Bechtel (1725-1800), a German composer and organist who worked in Mannheim and Strasbourg.
As the surname Bechtel spread across Europe, it also found its way to other parts of the world through emigration. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name in North America is that of Johann Bechtel (1687-1773), a German immigrant who settled in Pennsylvania in the early 18th century.
Another notable figure with the Bechtel surname was Stephen Douty Bechtel (1900-1989), an American engineer and construction executive who founded the Bechtel Corporation, one of the largest construction and engineering companies in the world.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Bechtel
Among Census respondents with the surname Bechtel, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.1%) and Hispanic (3.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Bechtel bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Bechtel surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.4% · 5,857
- Two or more races3.1% · 194
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 190
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 49
- Black or African American0.6% · 36
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Bechtel
Bechtel appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#5,137
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,813
+130 bearers (+1.9%)
Per 100,000 2.31
Rank movement Down 315 places
2020
#5,308
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,336
-477 bearers (-7.0%)
Per 100,000 2.12
Rank movement Down 171 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,822 | 6,683 | 2.48 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,137 | 6,813 | 2.31 | +130 bearers (+1.9%) | Down 315 places |
| 2020 | #5,308 | 6,336 | 2.12 | -477 bearers (-7.0%) | Down 171 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Bechtel surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #5,137 | #5,308 | -3.3% |
| Count | 6,813 | 6,336 | -7.0% |
| Per 100K | 2.31 | 2.12 | -8.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Bechtel bearers went from 6,813 to 6,336 (-7.0% change). The surname moved down 171 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,137 to #5,308.
FAQ
Bechtel surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Bechtel?
Name Census estimates that about 7,266 living Americans carry the surname Bechtel. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 47,172 residents.
How common is Bechtel?
Bechtel ranks #5,308 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.12 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 6,336 people with the surname Bechtel. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (7,266), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.12 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.12 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Bechtel.
Has Bechtel become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Bechtel went from 6,813 recorded bearers to 6,336. That is a decrease of 477 (-7.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,137 to #5,308.
What does the Census say about the background of Bechtel?
Among Census respondents with the surname Bechtel, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.1%) and Hispanic (3.0%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Bechtel in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.4% (5,857 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Bechtel appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.4%), Two or More Races (3.1%), Hispanic (3.0%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Bechtel (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Bechtel mean?
A German occupational surname referring to a baker or someone who bakes bread and cakes. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Bechtel (2.12 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people are called Bechtel?
Want to know how many Americans have the surname Bechtel? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.