2000
#14,158
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,947
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.72
Rare Last name
Friese
A German and Dutch toponymic surname indicating someone from the region of Friesland.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,115 Americans carry the last name Friese. That puts it at #15,324 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.62 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 162,059 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Friese 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
2.1K
1 in 162,059
Census rank
#15,324
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,844 bearers of the surname Friese in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.62 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 15324th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Friese, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.7%) and Hispanic (2.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Friese
The surname Friese originated from the northern regions of Germany, particularly in areas such as Friesland, Lower Saxony, and Westphalia. The name has its roots in the Old Saxon and Old Frisian languages, where it was derived from the word "Fries" or "Frisian," referring to the Frisian people, an ethnic group native to the coastal areas of the Netherlands and Germany.
The earliest recorded instances of the name Friese can be traced back to the 13th century, where it appeared in various historical documents and records from the region. One notable example is the "Urkundenbuch des Klosters Bursfeld," a collection of documents from the Bursfeld Monastery in Lower Saxony, which mentions individuals with the surname Friese during this period.
In the 14th century, the name Friese was found in the "Staatsarchiv Bremen," a collection of records from the city-state of Bremen, indicating the presence of individuals with this surname in the area. Additionally, the "Urkundenbuch der Stadt Hildesheim" from the same century includes references to individuals with the surname Friese in the city of Hildesheim.
During the 16th century, the name Friese gained prominence in various regions of Germany. One notable figure was Johann Friese (1490-1559), a German theologian and professor at the University of Rostock. Another individual of note was Erasmus Friese (1482-1558), a German humanist and poet from Saxony.
In the 17th century, the surname Friese was associated with several notable individuals, including Johann Philipp Friese (1619-1673), a German jurist and writer from Hesse. Additionally, Johann David Friese (1656-1732), a German theologian and author from Saxony, made significant contributions to the Lutheran church during this period.
The 18th century saw the emergence of Johann Christoph Friese (1721-1799), a German geographer and cartographer from Saxony, who is known for his detailed maps and atlases of various regions in Europe.
As the name Friese spread across Germany and beyond, it underwent various spelling variations, including Fries, Friess, and Frese, among others. These variations were often influenced by regional dialects and linguistic differences within the German-speaking areas.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Friese
Among Census respondents with the surname Friese, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.7%) and Hispanic (2.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Friese 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 Friese surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.5% · 1,705
- Two or more races3.7% · 69
- Hispanic or Latino2.2% · 40
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 14
- Black or African American0.4% · 8
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Friese
Friese 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
#12,597
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,457
+510 bearers (+26.2%)
Per 100,000 0.83
Rank movement Up 1,561 places
2020
#15,324
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,844
-613 bearers (-24.9%)
Per 100,000 0.62
Rank movement Down 2,727 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #14,158 | 1,947 | 0.72 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,597 | 2,457 | 0.83 | +510 bearers (+26.2%) | Up 1,561 places |
| 2020 | #15,324 | 1,844 | 0.62 | -613 bearers (-24.9%) | Down 2,727 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 Friese 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 | #12,597 | #15,324 | -21.6% |
| Count | 2,457 | 1,844 | -24.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.83 | 0.62 | -25.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Friese bearers went from 2,457 to 1,844 (-24.9% change). The surname moved down 2,727 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,597 to #15,324.
FAQ
Friese surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Friese?
Name Census estimates that about 2,115 living Americans carry the surname Friese. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 162,059 residents.
How common is Friese?
Friese ranks #15,324 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.62 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 1,844 people with the surname Friese. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,115), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.62 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.62 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Friese.
Has Friese become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Friese went from 2,457 recorded bearers to 1,844. That is a decrease of 613 (-24.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #12,597 to #15,324.
What does the Census say about the background of Friese?
Among Census respondents with the surname Friese, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.7%) and Hispanic (2.2%). 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 Friese in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.5% (1,705 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Friese appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.5%), Two or More Races (3.7%), Hispanic (2.2%). 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 Friese (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 Friese mean?
A German and Dutch toponymic surname indicating someone from the region of Friesland. 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 Friese (0.62 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 share the surname Friese?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.