2000
#15,627
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,717
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.64
Rare Last name
Reisner
A surname derived from the German word "Reisner," meaning a traveler or someone from Reisner.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,092 Americans carry the last name Reisner. That puts it at #15,465 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.61 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 163,841 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Reisner 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
2.1K
1 in 163,841
Census rank
#15,465
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,824 bearers of the surname Reisner in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.61 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 15465th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Reisner, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.1%) and Two or More Races (2.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Reisner
The surname Reisner has its origins in Germany, dating back to the 13th century. It is derived from the German word "reisen," which means "to travel" or "to journey." This suggests that the name likely referred to someone who traveled frequently, perhaps a merchant or a wandering tradesman.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Reisner name can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Brandenburgensis, a collection of medieval documents from the Margraviate of Brandenburg, which mentions a person named Johannes Reisner in the year 1287.
The name Reisner is also connected to various place names in Germany, such as Reisner Berg (Reisner Mountain) in the Black Forest region, and Reisnersdorf (Reisner's Village) in Saxony. These place names may have influenced the surname's spelling variations, such as Reissner or Reißner.
Notable individuals bearing the Reisner surname include:
1. Adam Reisner (1492-1576), a German Renaissance painter and printmaker known for his religious works and portraits.
2. Georg Andreas Reisner (1776-1828), a German painter and engraver renowned for his landscapes and biblical scenes.
3. George Andrew Reisner (1867-1942), an American archaeologist and Egyptologist who led several important excavations in Egypt, including the discovery of the Giza Pyramids Workmen's Village.
4. Hans Reisner (1884-1967), an Austrian-American architect and designer known for his contributions to Art Deco and Modernist architecture in New York City.
5. Hedwig Reisner (1887-1964), a German stage and film actress who appeared in over 50 movies during the silent era and the early years of talkies.
While the Reisner surname has spread across various regions and countries, its roots can be traced back to medieval Germany, where it likely originated as an occupational name for travelers or merchants.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Reisner
Among Census respondents with the surname Reisner, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.1%) and Two or More Races (2.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Reisner 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 Reisner surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.4% · 1,704
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 56
- Two or more races2.7% · 49
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 7
- Black or African American0.3% · 6
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Reisner
Reisner 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
#16,051
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,806
+89 bearers (+5.2%)
Per 100,000 0.61
Rank movement Down 424 places
2020
#15,465
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,824
+18 bearers (+1.0%)
Per 100,000 0.61
Rank movement Up 586 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #15,627 | 1,717 | 0.64 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #16,051 | 1,806 | 0.61 | +89 bearers (+5.2%) | Down 424 places |
| 2020 | #15,465 | 1,824 | 0.61 | +18 bearers (+1.0%) | Up 586 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 Reisner 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 | #16,051 | #15,465 | 3.7% |
| Count | 1,806 | 1,824 | 1.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.61 | 0.61 | 0.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Reisner bearers went from 1,806 to 1,824 (+1.0% change). The surname moved up 586 positions in the national ranking, going from #16,051 to #15,465.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Reisner
FAQ
Reisner surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Reisner?
Name Census estimates that about 2,092 living Americans carry the surname Reisner. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 163,841 residents.
How common is Reisner?
Reisner ranks #15,465 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.61 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 1,824 people with the surname Reisner. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,092), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.61 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.61 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Reisner.
Has Reisner become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Reisner went from 1,806 recorded bearers to 1,824. That is an increase of 18 (+1.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #16,051 to #15,465.
What does the Census say about the background of Reisner?
Among Census respondents with the surname Reisner, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.1%) and Two or More Races (2.7%). 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 Reisner in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.4% (1,704 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Reisner appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.4%), Hispanic (3.1%), Two or More Races (2.7%). 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 Reisner (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 Reisner mean?
A surname derived from the German word "Reisner," meaning a traveler or someone from Reisner. 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 Reisner (0.61 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 Americans have the surname Reisner?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.