2010
#138,304
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 121
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Fulwilder
A surname derived from a Middle English phrase meaning "bird that flits wildly".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 123 Americans carry the last name Fulwilder. That puts it at #151,639 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,786,621 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Fulwilder 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
123
1 in 2,786,621
Census rank
#151,639
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
107
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 107 bearers of the surname Fulwilder in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 151639th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Fulwilder, the largest self-reported group is American Indian/Alaska Native at 72.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (13.1%) and White (4.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Fulwilder
The surname FULWILDER has its origins in Germany, dating back to the 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old German words "ful" meaning "foul" or "unpleasant" and "wilder" meaning "wild" or "untamed." This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone with a rough or uncouth demeanor.
One of the earliest known records of the name FULWILDER can be found in the town of Heidelberg, where it appears in a 1582 church register. During this time, the name was also sometimes spelled as "Fulwildher" or "Fulwildere."
In the 17th century, the FULWILDER family was known to have resided in the region of Bavaria, particularly in the town of Augsburg. A notable figure from this era was Johannes Fulwilder, a merchant and textile trader who lived from 1612 to 1678.
As the FULWILDER family spread across Europe in the 18th and 19th centuries, the name became associated with various place names, such as Fulwilder Hof (Fulwilder's Farm) in the Rhineland region of Germany.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name in English-speaking regions was in 1795, when a man named Christoph Fulwilder immigrated to Pennsylvania from Germany. He settled in the town of Bethlehem and worked as a blacksmith.
Another notable figure was Friedrich Fulwilder, a German philosopher and writer who lived from 1810 to 1887. He was known for his works on ethics and morality.
In the 19th century, a branch of the FULWILDER family migrated to the Netherlands, where the name was sometimes spelled as "Fulwilder" or "Fulwildere." One prominent figure from this era was Willem Fulwilder, a Dutch artist and painter who was active in the late 1800s.
As the FULWILDER family continued to spread across Europe and beyond, the name appeared in various historical records and documents, reflecting the diverse geographical and cultural influences that shaped its evolution over time.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Fulwilder
Among Census respondents with the surname Fulwilder, the largest self-reported group is American Indian/Alaska Native at 72.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (13.1%) and White (4.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Fulwilder 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 Fulwilder surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- American Indian and Alaska Native72.9% · 78
- Hispanic or Latino13.1% · 14
- White4.7% · 5
- Black or African American4.7% · 5
- Two or more races4.7% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Fulwilder
Fulwilder appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#151,639
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
-14 bearers (-11.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 13,335 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #138,304 | 121 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #151,639 | 107 | 0.04 | -14 bearers (-11.6%) | Down 13,335 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 Fulwilder 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 | #138,304 | #151,639 | -9.6% |
| Count | 121 | 107 | -11.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -10.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Fulwilder bearers went from 121 to 107 (-11.6% change). The surname moved down 13,335 positions in the national ranking, going from #138,304 to #151,639.
FAQ
Fulwilder surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Fulwilder?
Name Census estimates that about 123 living Americans carry the surname Fulwilder. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,786,621 residents.
How common is Fulwilder?
Fulwilder ranks #151,639 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 107 people with the surname Fulwilder. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (123), 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 Fulwilder.
Has Fulwilder become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Fulwilder went from 121 recorded bearers to 107. That is a decrease of 14 (-11.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #138,304 to #151,639.
What does the Census say about the background of Fulwilder?
Among Census respondents with the surname Fulwilder, the largest self-reported group is American Indian/Alaska Native at 72.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (13.1%) and White (4.7%). 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?
American Indian/Alaska Native is the largest self-reported group for the surname Fulwilder in the 2020 Census, accounting for 72.9% (78 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Fulwilder appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are American Indian/Alaska Native (72.9%), Hispanic (13.1%), White (4.7%). 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 Fulwilder (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 Fulwilder mean?
A surname derived from a Middle English phrase meaning "bird that flits wildly". 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 Fulwilder (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 Fulwilder?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.