2000
#128,797
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 122
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Fretter
An English surname derived from the Old English word "fretan" meaning to devour or consume.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 128 Americans carry the last name Fretter. That puts it at #147,954 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,677,768 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Fretter 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Fretter with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
128
1 in 2,677,768
Census rank
#147,954
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
112
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 112 bearers of the surname Fretter in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 147954th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Fretter, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.4%. The next largest groups are Black (1.8%) and Hispanic (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Fretter
The surname Fretter is of German origin, with roots dating back to the 12th century. It is derived from the Middle High German word "vretern," which means "to gnaw or nibble." This suggests that the name may have been initially associated with an occupation or personal characteristic related to eating habits.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Fretter can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae Regiae, a collection of historical documents from Saxony, Germany. In this text, a person named Conradus Fretter is mentioned in a charter dated 1290.
The name Fretter also appears in various town and village records throughout Germany during the 14th and 15th centuries. For example, a Johannes Fretter is documented in the town of Erfurt in 1372, while a Henricus Fretter is recorded in the village of Oberkirchen in 1418.
Notable individuals with the surname Fretter throughout history include:
1. Christoph Fretter (1638-1718), a German composer and organist who served as the Kapellmeister at the court of Gotha.
2. Johann Friedrich Fretter (1670-1737), a German engraver and cartographer known for his intricate maps of various German cities.
3. Heinrich Fretter (1819-1888), a German architect who designed several prominent buildings in Dresden, including the Semperoper opera house.
4. Wilhelm Fretter (1862-1935), a German entomologist and naturalist who made significant contributions to the study of insect morphology and behavior.
5. Erich Fretter (1905-1995), a German sculptor and artist known for his abstract and figurative works in various media, including bronze, stone, and wood.
The name Fretter has also been associated with certain place names, particularly in Germany. For instance, the village of Fretter in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate likely derived its name from the surname or vice versa.
While the surname Fretter is not as commonly found today as some other German surnames, it has a rich history that spans several centuries and includes notable figures in various fields, from music and cartography to architecture and entomology.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Fretter
Among Census respondents with the surname Fretter, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.4%. The next largest groups are Black (1.8%) and Hispanic (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Fretter 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 Fretter surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White96.4% · 108
- Black or African American1.8% · 2
- Hispanic or Latino0.9% · 1
- Two or more races0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Fretter
Fretter 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
#142,108
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
-5 bearers (-4.1%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 13,311 places
2020
#147,954
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
-5 bearers (-4.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 5,846 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #128,797 | 122 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #142,108 | 117 | 0.04 | -5 bearers (-4.1%) | Down 13,311 places |
| 2020 | #147,954 | 112 | 0.04 | -5 bearers (-4.3%) | Down 5,846 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 Fretter 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 | #142,108 | #147,954 | -4.1% |
| Count | 117 | 112 | -4.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -6.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Fretter bearers went from 117 to 112 (-4.3% change). The surname moved down 5,846 positions in the national ranking, going from #142,108 to #147,954.
FAQ
Fretter surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Fretter?
Name Census estimates that about 128 living Americans carry the surname Fretter. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,677,768 residents.
How common is Fretter?
Fretter ranks #147,954 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 112 people with the surname Fretter. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (128), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Fretter.
Has Fretter become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Fretter went from 117 recorded bearers to 112. That is a decrease of 5 (-4.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #142,108 to #147,954.
What does the Census say about the background of Fretter?
Among Census respondents with the surname Fretter, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.4%. The next largest groups are Black (1.8%) and Hispanic (0.9%). 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 Fretter in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.4% (108 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Fretter appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (96.4%), Black (1.8%), Hispanic (0.9%). 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 Fretter (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 Fretter mean?
An English surname derived from the Old English word "fretan" meaning to devour or consume. 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 Fretter (0.04 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 Fretter?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.