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

Folch, 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 Folch surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Folch in America

Folch is the 119508th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Folch surname appeared 145 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 Folch.

We can also compare 2010 data for Folch 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 Folch

The surname FOLCH has its origins in the Catalonia region of Spain, dating back to the medieval period. It is believed to be derived from the Latin word "follis," meaning a bellows or bag of wind, likely referring to an occupation or trade involving the use of bellows.

The name first appeared in historical records in the 11th century, with notable references found in the Catalan county of Barcelona. One of the earliest recorded instances was in the Capbreu of Sant Cugat del Vallès, a medieval manuscript from 1098, which mentioned a person named Arnau Folch.

During the 12th and 13th centuries, the FOLCH surname became more widespread in the Catalan territories, with several notable individuals bearing the name. One such person was Ramon Folch de Cardona (1204-1276), who served as the 4th Viscount of Cardona and played a significant role in the political and military affairs of the Kingdom of Aragon.

In the 14th century, the FOLCH surname was also found in the neighboring region of Valencia, where it is believed to have been introduced by settlers from Catalonia. One notable bearer of the name during this time was Francesc Folch de Cardona (1335-1402), who held the title of Count of Cardona and served as a prominent military commander.

As the centuries passed, the FOLCH surname continued to be associated with various noble families and prominent individuals in Catalonia and other parts of Spain. For example, Pedro Folch de Cardona y Requesens (1482-1530) was a Spanish military leader and diplomat who served as the Viceroy of Sicily and later as the Viceroy of Naples.

Another notable figure with the FOLCH surname was José Folch y Ribas (1767-1815), a Spanish military officer who played a significant role in the Peninsular War against the French forces of Napoleon Bonaparte. He is remembered for his defense of the city of Zaragoza during the brutal sieges of 1808 and 1809.

While the FOLCH surname has its roots in the Catalan region, it has also been found in other parts of Spain and even in some parts of Latin America due to migration and the spread of the Spanish language and culture over the centuries.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Folch

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

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

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

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