2000
#24,969
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 934
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.35
Rare Last name
Fullard
A variant spelling of the occupational surname "fuller" referring to someone who fulled or cleaned cloth.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,297 Americans carry the last name Fullard. That puts it at #23,203 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.38 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 264,267 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Fullard 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 Fullard with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
1.3K
1 in 264,267
Census rank
#23,203
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,131 bearers of the surname Fullard in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.38 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 23203rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Fullard, the largest self-reported group is Black at 67.5%. The next largest groups are White (24.8%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Fullard
The surname Fullard is believed to have originated in England during the medieval period. It is thought to be a locational name, derived from a place name that once referred to a well or spring located on a foul, or muddy, patch of land.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Fullard can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a comprehensive record of landowners and properties in England commissioned by William the Conqueror. The name appears as "Fulard" in this historical document.
In the 13th century, the name was also recorded in various forms, such as "Fulard," "Foulard," and "Fowlard," reflecting the evolution of spelling conventions over time. These variations likely stemmed from the original Old English words "ful" (meaning foul or dirty) and "ard" (referring to a piece of land).
During the medieval period, the name Fullard was primarily concentrated in the counties of Warwickshire and Gloucestershire, indicating that the original place from which the surname derived was likely located in this region.
Notable individuals bearing the surname Fullard throughout history include John Fullard (c. 1525-1589), an English politician who served as a Member of Parliament for Warwick during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. Another noteworthy figure was William Fullard (1679-1744), a prominent English architect known for his work on several churches and buildings in Gloucestershire.
In the 17th century, the name Fullard was also found in records from the American colonies, suggesting that some bearers of this surname had emigrated from England to the New World during this time period. One such individual was Thomas Fullard (c. 1620-1680), who settled in Virginia and became a prosperous landowner and tobacco farmer.
Another notable figure was Sarah Fullard (1714-1792), an English writer and poet who published several works during the 18th century, including a collection of poems titled "The Poetical Works of Sarah Fullard."
Throughout its history, the surname Fullard has maintained a presence in various parts of England, particularly in the counties where it originated, as well as in other regions of the United Kingdom and in the United States, where descendants of early English settlers bearing this name can be found.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Fullard
Among Census respondents with the surname Fullard, the largest self-reported group is Black at 67.5%. The next largest groups are White (24.8%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Fullard 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 Fullard surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American67.5% · 763
- White24.8% · 281
- Two or more races4.6% · 52
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 28
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 6
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Fullard
Fullard 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
#22,404
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,149
+215 bearers (+23.0%)
Per 100,000 0.39
Rank movement Up 2,565 places
2020
#23,203
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,131
-18 bearers (-1.6%)
Per 100,000 0.38
Rank movement Down 799 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #24,969 | 934 | 0.35 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #22,404 | 1,149 | 0.39 | +215 bearers (+23.0%) | Up 2,565 places |
| 2020 | #23,203 | 1,131 | 0.38 | -18 bearers (-1.6%) | Down 799 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 Fullard 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 | #22,404 | #23,203 | -3.6% |
| Count | 1,149 | 1,131 | -1.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.39 | 0.38 | -3.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Fullard bearers went from 1,149 to 1,131 (-1.6% change). The surname moved down 799 positions in the national ranking, going from #22,404 to #23,203.
FAQ
Fullard surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Fullard?
Name Census estimates that about 1,297 living Americans carry the surname Fullard. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 264,267 residents.
How common is Fullard?
Fullard ranks #23,203 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.38 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 1,131 people with the surname Fullard. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,297), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.38 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.38 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 Fullard.
Has Fullard become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Fullard went from 1,149 recorded bearers to 1,131. That is a decrease of 18 (-1.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #22,404 to #23,203.
What does the Census say about the background of Fullard?
Among Census respondents with the surname Fullard, the largest self-reported group is Black at 67.5%. The next largest groups are White (24.8%) and Two or More Races (4.6%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Fullard in the 2020 Census, accounting for 67.5% (763 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Fullard appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (67.5%), White (24.8%), Two or More Races (4.6%). 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 Fullard (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 Fullard mean?
A variant spelling of the occupational surname "fuller" referring to someone who fulled or cleaned cloth. 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 Fullard (0.38 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 Fullard?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.