2000
#22,384
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,073
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.40
Rare Last name
Hert
A surname with possible origins relating to a deer (hart) keeper or forested area.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,183 Americans carry the last name Hert. That puts it at #25,153 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.35 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 289,733 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hert 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Hert with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
1.2K
1 in 289,733
Census rank
#25,153
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,032 bearers of the surname Hert in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.35 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 25153rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hert, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.5%. The next largest groups are Black (6.8%) and Two or More Races (5.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hert
The surname Hert has its origins in England, with records dating back to the 12th century. It is believed to have derived from the Middle English word "hert," meaning a deer or stag. This term can be traced back to the Old English "heorot," which shares a common root with the German word "Hirsch."
The earliest known reference to the name Hert appears in the Pipe Rolls of Hertfordshire in 1176, where a Roger Hert is mentioned. This suggests that the name may have initially been associated with a location or occupation related to deer hunting or forest management.
In the 13th century, the surname is found in various historical records across England, including the Hundred Rolls of 1273, where a William le Hert is documented in Oxfordshire. The use of the prefix "le" indicates that the name was initially a descriptive nickname before becoming a hereditary surname.
One notable bearer of the Hert surname was John Hert, a prominent merchant and alderman in the city of London during the late 14th century. He is mentioned in the records of the Worshipful Company of Mercers, one of the oldest livery companies in the city.
In the 15th century, the name appears in the Paston Letters, a collection of correspondence between members of the influential Paston family. In one letter dated 1472, a William Hert is mentioned as a servant to John Paston.
The Hert surname also has connections to places like Hartwell in Northamptonshire, which was formerly known as "Hertwell" or "Hertwelle," potentially derived from the same root as the surname. This may indicate that some branches of the Hert family took their name from specific localities.
Among other notable individuals with the Hert surname, we can mention:
1. Robert Hert (c. 1490 - 1557), an English theologian and Protestant reformer during the reign of Edward VI.
2. William Hert (c. 1570 - 1639), an English dramatist and playwright who contributed to several plays in the Jacobean era.
3. Elizabeth Hert (1615 - 1690), an early Quaker minister and author who wrote extensively on religious topics.
4. John Hert (1725 - 1802), a British Army officer who served during the American Revolutionary War and later became a member of Parliament.
5. Samuel Hert (1798 - 1876), an English landscape painter known for his depictions of rural scenes and landscapes.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hert
Among Census respondents with the surname Hert, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.5%. The next largest groups are Black (6.8%) and Two or More Races (5.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Hert 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 Hert surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White80.5% · 831
- Black or African American6.8% · 70
- Two or more races5.4% · 56
- Hispanic or Latino4.1% · 42
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.2% · 23
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hert
Hert 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
#24,762
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,006
-67 bearers (-6.2%)
Per 100,000 0.34
Rank movement Down 2,378 places
2020
#25,153
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,032
+26 bearers (+2.6%)
Per 100,000 0.35
Rank movement Down 391 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #22,384 | 1,073 | 0.40 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #24,762 | 1,006 | 0.34 | -67 bearers (-6.2%) | Down 2,378 places |
| 2020 | #25,153 | 1,032 | 0.35 | +26 bearers (+2.6%) | Down 391 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 Hert 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 | #24,762 | #25,153 | -1.6% |
| Count | 1,006 | 1,032 | 2.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.34 | 0.35 | 1.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hert bearers went from 1,006 to 1,032 (+2.6% change). The surname moved down 391 positions in the national ranking, going from #24,762 to #25,153.
FAQ
Hert surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hert?
Name Census estimates that about 1,183 living Americans carry the surname Hert. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 289,733 residents.
How common is Hert?
Hert ranks #25,153 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.35 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 1,032 people with the surname Hert. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,183), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.35 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.35 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Hert.
Has Hert become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hert went from 1,006 recorded bearers to 1,032. That is an increase of 26 (+2.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #24,762 to #25,153.
What does the Census say about the background of Hert?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hert, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.5%. The next largest groups are Black (6.8%) and Two or More Races (5.4%). 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 Hert in the 2020 Census, accounting for 80.5% (831 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hert appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (80.5%), Black (6.8%), Two or More Races (5.4%). 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 Hert (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 Hert mean?
A surname with possible origins relating to a deer (hart) keeper or forested area. 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 Hert (0.35 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 have the last name Hert?
You can see how many people have the surname Hert on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.