2000
#2,699
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 12,252
First available Census row
Per 100,000 4.54
Uncommon Last name
Frantz
A Germanic surname derived from the given name Franciscus, meaning "Frenchman" or "free man."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 12,953 Americans carry the last name Frantz. That puts it at #3,106 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.78 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 26,461 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Frantz 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
13K
1 in 26,461
Census rank
#3,106
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
11K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 11,296 bearers of the surname Frantz in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.78 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3106th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Frantz, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Frantz
The surname Frantz originated in Germany, with its earliest known records dating back to the 13th century. It is derived from the Germanic personal name Franko, which means "a Frankish person" or "free man." The Franks were a group of Germanic tribes that played a significant role in the history of Europe, particularly in the establishment of the Frankish Empire.
Frantz is believed to have evolved from the Old High German name Franko, which was later adapted to the Middle High German form Frantz. This name was commonly found in areas of modern-day Germany, particularly in the regions of Bavaria and Saxony, where the Frankish tribes had settled.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Frantz can be found in the Codex Traditionum Monasterii Sancti Emmerami, a medieval manuscript from the Benedictine monastery of St. Emmeram in Regensburg, Bavaria. The document, dated around 1280, mentions a certain "Conradus dictus Frantz" (Conrad called Frantz).
In the 14th century, a notable bearer of the name was Frantz von Sickingen (c. 1481-1523), a German knight and Imperial governor who played a significant role in the German Peasants' War. Another prominent figure was Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's mother, Katharina Elisabeth Frantz (1731-1808), whose maiden name was Frantz.
Other historical individuals with the surname Frantz include:
1. Kaspar Frantz (1567-1614), a German theologian and author.
2. Erasmus Frantz (1612-1688), a German philosopher and theologian.
3. Johann Frantz (1639-1718), a German composer and organist.
4. Agnes Frantz (1537-1590), a German Benedictine abbess and author.
5. Johann Valentin Frantz (1642-1718), a German jurist and historian.
The surname Frantz has also been associated with various place names in Germany, such as Frantzburg, a town in Saxony-Anhalt, and Frantzheim, a municipality in North Rhine-Westphalia. These place names likely derived from individuals bearing the surname Frantz who settled or had some connection to these locations.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Frantz
Among Census respondents with the surname Frantz, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Frantz 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 Frantz surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.4% · 10,442
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 319
- Two or more races2.8% · 314
- Black or African American0.7% · 83
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 83
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 55
Timeline
Historical Census data for Frantz
Frantz 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
#2,969
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 12,079
-173 bearers (-1.4%)
Per 100,000 4.09
Rank movement Down 270 places
2020
#3,106
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 11,296
-783 bearers (-6.5%)
Per 100,000 3.78
Rank movement Down 137 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,699 | 12,252 | 4.54 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,969 | 12,079 | 4.09 | -173 bearers (-1.4%) | Down 270 places |
| 2020 | #3,106 | 11,296 | 3.78 | -783 bearers (-6.5%) | Down 137 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 Frantz 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 | #2,969 | #3,106 | -4.6% |
| Count | 12,079 | 11,296 | -6.5% |
| Per 100K | 4.09 | 3.78 | -7.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Frantz bearers went from 12,079 to 11,296 (-6.5% change). The surname moved down 137 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,969 to #3,106.
FAQ
Frantz surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Frantz?
Name Census estimates that about 12,953 living Americans carry the surname Frantz. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 26,461 residents.
How common is Frantz?
Frantz ranks #3,106 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.78 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 11,296 people with the surname Frantz. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (12,953), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.78 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.78 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 Frantz.
Has Frantz become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Frantz went from 12,079 recorded bearers to 11,296. That is a decrease of 783 (-6.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,969 to #3,106.
What does the Census say about the background of Frantz?
Among Census respondents with the surname Frantz, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Frantz in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.4% (10,442 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Frantz appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.4%), Hispanic (2.8%), Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Frantz (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 Frantz mean?
A Germanic surname derived from the given name Franciscus, meaning "Frenchman" or "free man." 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 Frantz (3.78 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 people are called Frantz?
Want to know how many people are called Frantz? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.