2000
#3,012
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 11,028
First available Census row
Per 100,000 4.09
Uncommon Last name
Fultz
Derived from the German surname "Volz," referring to someone from the town of Volz or Folz.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 12,106 Americans carry the last name Fultz. That puts it at #3,338 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.53 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 28,313 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Fultz 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 28,313
Census rank
#3,338
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
11K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 10,557 bearers of the surname Fultz in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.53 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3338th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Fultz, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.6%. The next largest groups are Black (10.5%) and Two or More Races (4.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Fultz
The surname Fultz is of German origin, tracing its roots back to the medieval period. It is thought to be a locative name, derived from a place name such as Fultz or Fults, which were likely named after the German word "Fultz" meaning "a little horse or pony."
One of the earliest known references to the name Fultz can be found in the records of the town of Fults, located in the present-day state of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. These records date back to the 14th century and mention several individuals bearing variations of the name, such as Fultzer and Fultzer.
The Fultz surname first appeared in England in the late 16th century, when German immigrants began settling in various parts of the country. One of the earliest recorded examples of the name in England is that of Johannes Fultz, who was born in Nuremberg, Germany, in 1578 and later settled in London.
In the 17th century, members of the Fultz family migrated to the American colonies, where the name took on various spellings, including Foultz, Fults, and Foltz. One notable bearer of the name from this period was John Foultz (1641-1723), a German Quaker who settled in Pennsylvania and became a prominent landowner and businessman.
During the 18th and 19th centuries, the Fultz surname continued to spread across various parts of the United States, with families settling in states such as Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois. Notable individuals from this period include Jacob Fultz (1765-1842), a soldier in the American Revolutionary War, and John Fultz (1813-1895), a prominent farmer and landowner in Ohio.
Other notable bearers of the Fultz surname throughout history include:
1. Johann Fultz (1647-1720), a German composer and organist known for his contributions to the development of the Baroque style.
2. Wilhelm Fultz (1806-1875), a German philosopher and author who wrote extensively on the concept of human freedom.
3. Amelia Fultz (1870-1940), an American educator and suffragist who played a significant role in the women's rights movement in the early 20th century.
4. Otto Fultz (1892-1975), a German-born American architect who designed several notable buildings in New York City and Chicago.
5. Karl Fultz (1918-2002), a German-American physicist who made important contributions to the field of nuclear physics during the 20th century.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Fultz
Among Census respondents with the surname Fultz, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.6%. The next largest groups are Black (10.5%) and Two or More Races (4.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Fultz 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 Fultz surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White81.6% · 8,613
- Black or African American10.5% · 1,106
- Two or more races4.5% · 475
- Hispanic or Latino2.4% · 255
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 70
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 38
Timeline
Historical Census data for Fultz
Fultz 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
#3,187
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 11,342
+314 bearers (+2.8%)
Per 100,000 3.85
Rank movement Down 175 places
2020
#3,338
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 10,557
-785 bearers (-6.9%)
Per 100,000 3.53
Rank movement Down 151 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,012 | 11,028 | 4.09 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,187 | 11,342 | 3.85 | +314 bearers (+2.8%) | Down 175 places |
| 2020 | #3,338 | 10,557 | 3.53 | -785 bearers (-6.9%) | Down 151 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 Fultz 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 | #3,187 | #3,338 | -4.7% |
| Count | 11,342 | 10,557 | -6.9% |
| Per 100K | 3.85 | 3.53 | -8.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Fultz bearers went from 11,342 to 10,557 (-6.9% change). The surname moved down 151 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,187 to #3,338.
FAQ
Fultz surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Fultz?
Name Census estimates that about 12,106 living Americans carry the surname Fultz. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 28,313 residents.
How common is Fultz?
Fultz ranks #3,338 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 10,557 people with the surname Fultz. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (12,106), 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 Fultz.
Has Fultz become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Fultz went from 11,342 recorded bearers to 10,557. That is a decrease of 785 (-6.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,187 to #3,338.
What does the Census say about the background of Fultz?
Among Census respondents with the surname Fultz, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.6%. The next largest groups are Black (10.5%) 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 Fultz in the 2020 Census, accounting for 81.6% (8,613 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Fultz appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (81.6%), Black (10.5%), 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 Fultz (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 Fultz mean?
Derived from the German surname "Volz," referring to someone from the town of Volz or Folz. 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 Fultz (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 common is the surname Fultz?
Want to know how common the surname Fultz is? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.