2000
#101,157
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 165
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.06
Very Rare Last name
Schoby
A shortened version of Schober, a German nickname meaning "little woodpecker".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 235 Americans carry the last name Schoby. That puts it at #95,461 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.07 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,458,529 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Schoby 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
235
1 in 1,458,529
Census rank
#95,461
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
205
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 205 bearers of the surname Schoby in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.07 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 95461st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Schoby, the largest self-reported group is White at 66.8%. The next largest groups are Black (20.5%) and Two or More Races (6.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Schoby
The surname SCHOBY originated in Germany in the 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old High German word "schober," which means a stack of hay or grain. This suggests that the name may have been initially an occupational name for someone who worked with or lived near haystacks.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname SCHOBY can be traced back to the small village of Schobenhausen in the region of Bavaria. In the local church records of 1542, a farmer named Hans SCHOBY is mentioned. It is likely that this individual was among the first to bear the surname in its current spelling.
During the 17th century, the name spread to other parts of Germany, with families bearing the SCHOBY surname appearing in records from towns such as Nürnberg and Regensburg. One notable individual from this era was Johann SCHOBY, a merchant born in 1624 in Nürnberg, who established a successful trading company dealing with grain and other agricultural products.
In the late 18th century, a SCHOBY family relocated to the town of Schöningen in Lower Saxony. The family patriarch, Friedrich SCHOBY (1755-1832), was a respected landowner and local official. His son, Wilhelm SCHOBY (1785-1861), served as the town's mayor for several years.
Another prominent figure associated with the SCHOBY name was Katherina SCHOBY (1810-1892), a renowned educator and advocate for women's rights. Born in Regensburg, she founded one of the first schools for girls in the region and campaigned tirelessly for equal educational opportunities for women.
As the SCHOBY surname spread across Europe, it also found its way to other parts of the world through emigration. In the late 19th century, a family bearing the name settled in America, with records showing a Johannes SCHOBY arriving in New York City in 1887 from Hamburg, Germany.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Schoby
Among Census respondents with the surname Schoby, the largest self-reported group is White at 66.8%. The next largest groups are Black (20.5%) and Two or More Races (6.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Schoby 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 Schoby surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White66.8% · 137
- Black or African American20.5% · 42
- Two or more races6.3% · 13
- Hispanic or Latino4.9% · 10
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Schoby
Schoby 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
#99,845
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 181
+16 bearers (+9.7%)
Per 100,000 0.06
Rank movement Up 1,312 places
2020
#95,461
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 205
+24 bearers (+13.3%)
Per 100,000 0.07
Rank movement Up 4,384 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #101,157 | 165 | 0.06 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #99,845 | 181 | 0.06 | +16 bearers (+9.7%) | Up 1,312 places |
| 2020 | #95,461 | 205 | 0.07 | +24 bearers (+13.3%) | Up 4,384 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 Schoby 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 | #99,845 | #95,461 | 4.4% |
| Count | 181 | 205 | 13.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.06 | 0.07 | 14.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Schoby bearers went from 181 to 205 (+13.3% change). The surname moved up 4,384 positions in the national ranking, going from #99,845 to #95,461.
FAQ
Schoby surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Schoby?
Name Census estimates that about 235 living Americans carry the surname Schoby. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,458,529 residents.
How common is Schoby?
Schoby ranks #95,461 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.07 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 205 people with the surname Schoby. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (235), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.07 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.07 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 Schoby.
Has Schoby become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Schoby went from 181 recorded bearers to 205. That is an increase of 24 (+13.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #99,845 to #95,461.
What does the Census say about the background of Schoby?
Among Census respondents with the surname Schoby, the largest self-reported group is White at 66.8%. The next largest groups are Black (20.5%) and Two or More Races (6.3%). 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 Schoby in the 2020 Census, accounting for 66.8% (137 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Schoby appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (66.8%), Black (20.5%), Two or More Races (6.3%). 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 Schoby (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 Schoby mean?
A shortened version of Schober, a German nickname meaning "little woodpecker". 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 Schoby (0.07 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 surname Schoby?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.