2000
#2,955
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 11,209
First available Census row
Per 100,000 4.16
Uncommon Last name
Fortner
A German occupational surname referring to the keeper or guard of a fortress or fortified town.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 12,091 Americans carry the last name Fortner. That puts it at #3,341 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.53 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 28,348 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Fortner surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
12K
1 in 28,348
Census rank
#3,341
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
11K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 10,544 bearers of the surname Fortner in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.53 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3341st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Fortner, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.6%. The next largest groups are Black (5.7%) and Two or More Races (4.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Fortner
The surname FORTNER is believed to have originated in Germany, likely during the Middle Ages. It is thought to be derived from the Old German word "fort," meaning "forth" or "forward," suggesting that the name may have been initially used as a descriptive term for someone who was adventurous or traveled frequently.
In some regions of Germany, the name may also have been associated with the word "Furten," which referred to a shallow place in a river where one could cross safely. This could indicate that the name was initially given to someone who lived near a ford or crossing point.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the FORTNER surname can be found in the town of Nuremberg, Germany, in the 14th century. A merchant named Hans FORTNER was mentioned in a local record from 1387, indicating that the name was already established in the region at that time.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the FORTNER name appeared in various German records and documents, including church registers and tax rolls. Notable individuals with this surname from this period include Johann FORTNER (1540-1612), a Protestant theologian and author from Saxony, and Anna FORTNER (1598-1675), a midwife and herbalist from Bavaria.
As the FORTNER family spread across Europe, the name encountered various spelling variations, such as FORTNER, FORTENER, and FORTTNER. In the 18th century, a branch of the family settled in the Netherlands, where the name was sometimes recorded as FORTENAAR.
One of the most famous individuals with the FORTNER surname was Friedrich FORTNER (1832-1901), a German architect and urban planner who designed several notable buildings in Berlin and other cities. Another notable figure was Wilhelm FORTNER (1886-1958), a German military officer and recipient of the Iron Cross during World War I.
In the 19th and early 20th centuries, many FORTNER families emigrated from Germany and other parts of Europe to North America, where the name continued to be used and adapted to local spellings and pronunciations.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Fortner
Among Census respondents with the surname Fortner, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.6%. The next largest groups are Black (5.7%) and Two or More Races (4.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Fortner bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Fortner surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White85.6% · 9,022
- Black or African American5.7% · 604
- Two or more races4.5% · 477
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 312
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 73
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 56
Timeline
Historical Census data for Fortner
Fortner appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#3,001
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 11,951
+742 bearers (+6.6%)
Per 100,000 4.05
Rank movement Down 46 places
2020
#3,341
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 10,544
-1,407 bearers (-11.8%)
Per 100,000 3.53
Rank movement Down 340 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,955 | 11,209 | 4.16 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,001 | 11,951 | 4.05 | +742 bearers (+6.6%) | Down 46 places |
| 2020 | #3,341 | 10,544 | 3.53 | -1,407 bearers (-11.8%) | Down 340 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Fortner surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #3,001 | #3,341 | -11.3% |
| Count | 11,951 | 10,544 | -11.8% |
| Per 100K | 4.05 | 3.53 | -12.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Fortner bearers went from 11,951 to 10,544 (-11.8% change). The surname moved down 340 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,001 to #3,341.
FAQ
Fortner surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Fortner?
Name Census estimates that about 12,091 living Americans carry the surname Fortner. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 28,348 residents.
How common is Fortner?
Fortner ranks #3,341 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.53 per 100,000 residents, which is about 4 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 10,544 people with the surname Fortner. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (12,091), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.53 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.53 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 4 of them to have the surname Fortner.
Has Fortner become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Fortner went from 11,951 recorded bearers to 10,544. That is a decrease of 1,407 (-11.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,001 to #3,341.
What does the Census say about the background of Fortner?
Among Census respondents with the surname Fortner, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.6%. The next largest groups are Black (5.7%) and Two or More Races (4.5%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Fortner in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.6% (9,022 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Fortner appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (85.6%), Black (5.7%), Two or More Races (4.5%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Fortner (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Fortner mean?
A German occupational surname referring to the keeper or guard of a fortress or fortified town. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Fortner (3.53 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many Americans have the surname Fortner?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.