Find out how popular the last name Feldman is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Feldman.
An occupational surname referring to a field worker or one who lives near or works in fields.
Feldman, 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 Feldman surname is from the 2010 census data.
Feldman is the 1540th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.
The Feldman surname appeared 23,356 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 8 people would have the surname Feldman.
We can also compare 2010 data for Feldman 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.
2010 | 2000 | Change (%) | |
---|---|---|---|
Rank | 1540 | 1401 | 9.45% |
Count | 23,356 | 23,195 | 0.69% |
Proportion per 100k | 7.92 | 8.60 | -8.23% |
The surname Feldman is of German origin, derived from the Middle High German words "velt" meaning "field" and "man" meaning "man." It first emerged in the 13th century as an occupational name for someone who lived or worked in fields, likely as a farmer or agricultural laborer.
The earliest known record of the surname Feldman dates back to the 14th century in the town of Nuremberg, Bavaria. It appears in a manuscript from 1347 as "Hans Veltman," referring to a local landowner.
During the Middle Ages, the Feldman name was primarily concentrated in the southern regions of Germany, particularly in Bavaria and neighboring areas. Variations in spelling included Veltman, Feltman, and Feldtman, reflecting regional dialects and scribal inconsistencies.
One of the earliest notable individuals with the Feldman surname was Johannes Feldmann (c. 1490 - 1558), a German Lutheran theologian and reformer who played a significant role in the Protestant Reformation. He was a close associate of Martin Luther and served as a professor at the University of Wittenberg.
In the 17th century, the Feldman name gained prominence in the Netherlands, likely due to migration from Germany. One example is Willem Feldmann (1616 - 1668), a Dutch Golden Age painter known for his still-life paintings and landscapes.
As the Feldman family spread across Europe, the name appeared in various historical records and documents. For instance, the Domesday Book of 1086, a survey of landowners in England commissioned by William the Conqueror, includes a reference to a landowner named "Alured de Feldemannesvurde" in Warwickshire, possibly an early precursor to the Feldman name.
Other notable individuals with the Feldman surname include:
While the Feldman surname has its roots in medieval Germany, it has since spread across Europe and beyond, carrying a rich history and diverse cultural influences over the centuries.
We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Feldman.
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:
For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Feldman was:
Race/Ethnicity | Percentage | Total Occurrences |
---|---|---|
Non-Hispanic White Only | 95.14% | 22,221 |
Non-Hispanic Black Only | 0.43% | 100 |
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only | 0.50% | 117 |
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0.08% | 19 |
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races | 0.95% | 222 |
Hispanic Origin | 2.90% | 677 |
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 Feldman has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.
2010 | 2000 | Change (%) | |
---|---|---|---|
White | 95.14% | 96.36% | -1.27% |
Black | 0.43% | 0.47% | -8.89% |
Asian and Pacific Islander | 0.50% | 0.38% | 27.27% |
American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0.08% | 0.08% | 0.00% |
Two or More Races | 0.95% | 0.92% | 3.21% |
Hispanic | 2.90% | 1.78% | 47.86% |
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 Feldman was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.
If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Feldman, please contact us.
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<a href="http://namecensus.com/last-names/feldman-surname-popularity/">Feldman last name popularity, history, and meaning</a>
"Feldman last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on October 7, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/feldman-surname-popularity/.
"Feldman last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/feldman-surname-popularity/. Accessed 7 October, 2024
Feldman last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/feldman-surname-popularity/.
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