Find out how popular the last name Adolf is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Adolf.

Adolf, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Adolf surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Adolf in America

Adolf is the 28704th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Adolf surname appeared 830 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Adolf.

We can also compare 2010 data for Adolf to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Adolf

The surname Adolf has its origins in the German language and can be traced back to the 8th century AD. It is derived from the Old High German words "adal," meaning noble or honorable, and "wolf," which refers to a wolf. The name was initially a compound of these two words, forming "Adalwolf" or "Adalwulf."

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Adolf can be found in the Fulda Monastery records from the 9th century, where an individual named Adalholf is mentioned. The name also appears in various medieval manuscripts and chronicles, such as the Codex Traditionum Fuldensium and the Annales Fuldenses.

In the 11th century, the name Adolf gained popularity among the nobility and ruling families in Germany. One notable bearer of the name was Adolf I, Count of Schauenburg and Holstein, who lived from around 1075 to 1130. He was a prominent figure in the Holy Roman Empire and played a significant role in the conflicts between the Emperor and the Pope.

During the 12th century, the name Adolf was associated with several historical figures, including Adolf II, Count of Schauenburg and Holstein (c. 1128-1164), and Adolf III, Count of Berg (c. 1120-1218). Both were influential noblemen in their respective regions and left their mark on the history of the time.

In the 13th century, the name Adolf appeared in various places across Europe, with individuals such as Adolf IV, Count of Berg (c. 1220-1259), and Adolf, Count of Nassau (c. 1255-1298), who later became King Adolf of Germany from 1292 to 1298.

Another notable bearer of the name was Adolf, Duke of Nassau-Dillenburg (1629-1676), who played a significant role in the Dutch Revolt against Spanish rule in the 16th and 17th centuries. His son, Adolf, Prince of Nassau-Dillenburg (1657-1675), was also a prominent figure in European history.

Throughout the centuries, the surname Adolf has been carried by many notable individuals, including Adolf Frederick, King of Sweden (1710-1771), Adolf von Menzel, a German painter and illustrator (1815-1905), and Adolf Hitler, the infamous German dictator and leader of the Nazi Party (1889-1945).

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Adolf

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Adolf.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Adolf was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Adolf has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Adolf was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Adolf, please contact us.

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