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

Falk, 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 Falk surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Falk in America

Falk is the 2991st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Falk surname appeared 11,979 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 4 people would have the surname Falk.

We can also compare 2010 data for Falk 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 Falk

The surname Falk has its origins in Germany and dates back to the Middle Ages. It is derived from the German word "falke," which means "falcon." This name was likely given to someone who was associated with falconry, either as a falconer or someone who bred falcons.

The earliest recorded instances of the name Falk can be found in medieval German records and documents from the 12th and 13th centuries. One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Dietrich Falk, a German nobleman who lived in the late 12th century.

During the High Middle Ages, the name Falk was particularly prevalent in regions such as Bavaria and Saxony. It was also found in areas of what is now Poland and the Czech Republic, which were part of the Holy Roman Empire at the time.

In the 14th century, the Falk name appeared in the Berne Shaking Book, a medieval manuscript that recorded legal transactions and disputes in the Swiss city of Berne. This suggests that the name had spread to other parts of German-speaking Europe by that time.

One of the most notable historical figures bearing the surname Falk was Johann Daniel Falk, a German naturalist and botanist who lived from 1768 to 1826. He made significant contributions to the study of plant life and was a pioneer in the field of horticulture.

Another prominent individual with the Falk surname was Adolph Falk, a German-American banker and philanthropist who lived from 1818 to 1901. He played a crucial role in the development of the banking industry in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and was known for his charitable endeavors.

In the Netherlands, the Falk surname was sometimes spelled as "Valck" or "Valke," reflecting the Dutch language's preference for the "v" sound over the German "f." One notable Dutch bearer of this name was Jacob Valcke, a 17th-century painter known for his portraits and genre scenes.

In England, the Falk surname can be traced back to the 16th century, likely originating from German or Dutch immigrants who brought the name with them. One famous English bearer of the Falk name was Samuel Falk, a 19th-century industrialist and philanthropist who lived from 1826 to 1892.

As the Falk name spread across Europe and beyond, it was often anglicized or adapted to local languages and spellings, such as "Falck" in Scandinavia or "Falk" in Russia and Eastern Europe. However, the core meaning and origin of the name remained rooted in its association with falconry and the German word "falke."

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Falk

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

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 Falk 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 Falk 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 Falk was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!