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

Fernholz, 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 Fernholz surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Fernholz in America

Fernholz is the 42937th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Fernholz surname appeared 504 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 Fernholz.

We can also compare 2010 data for Fernholz 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 Fernholz

The surname Fernholz originated in Germany during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the German words "fern" meaning "distant" and "holz" meaning "wood" or "forest." This suggests that the name may have initially referred to a person who lived near a distant or remote wooded area.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Fernholz can be found in a 15th-century manuscript from the region of Bavaria. The document mentions a landowner named Hans Fernholz who held property near the town of Nürnberg.

Another early reference to the Fernholz name appears in the church records of a small village near the Black Forest in the late 16th century. These records document the baptism of a child named Johann Fernholz in 1587.

During the 17th century, the Fernholz name began to spread across various regions of Germany. In 1642, a merchant named Wilhelm Fernholz is recorded as having established a successful trading business in the city of Hamburg.

One notable figure with the Fernholz surname was Karl Fernholz (1829-1901), a German mathematician and professor at the University of Heidelberg. He made significant contributions to the field of differential geometry and authored several influential textbooks on the subject.

Another historically significant individual was Elise Fernholz (1860-1942), a German women's rights activist and one of the pioneers of the feminist movement in her country. She campaigned tirelessly for gender equality and the right of women to vote.

In the early 20th century, a German artist named Otto Fernholz (1875-1957) gained recognition for his landscape paintings depicting the scenic beauty of the Bavarian countryside. His works are featured in several prominent art galleries across Germany.

Hans Fernholz (1912-1988) was a German military officer who served during World War II. He played a role in the defense of Berlin during the final stages of the war and later wrote a memoir detailing his experiences.

While the Fernholz name originated in Germany, it eventually spread to other parts of Europe and beyond as individuals with this surname migrated and settled in different regions over the centuries.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Fernholz

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

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

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

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