Find out how popular the last name Grafius is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Grafius.

Grafius, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Grafius surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Grafius in America

Grafius is the 147253rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Grafius surname appeared 112 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Grafius.

We can also compare 2010 data for Grafius to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Grafius

The surname Grafius is believed to have originated in Germany during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Old German word "graf," which means "count" or "earl." This suggests that the name initially referred to someone who held a prestigious position in the nobility or served under a count.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Grafius can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae Regiae, a collection of historical documents from the Kingdom of Saxony, which mentions a certain "Henricus Grafius" in the year 1287. This indicates that the name had already been established in the region by the 13th century.

In the 14th century, the Grafius name appears in various medieval records and manuscripts from various German regions, including the Chronica Regia Coloniensis, which chronicles the history of the city of Cologne. This suggests that the name had spread across different parts of Germany by that time.

The earliest known bearer of the surname Grafius was Johannes Grafius, who was born in Nuremberg, Germany, in 1499. He was a renowned scholar and humanist who authored several works on philosophy, theology, and classical literature. His contributions to the intellectual landscape of the Renaissance period were significant.

Another notable figure was Andreas Grafius (1510-1558), a German theologian and reformer who played an important role in the Protestant Reformation. He worked closely with Martin Luther and was instrumental in spreading the Reformation's teachings throughout Germany.

In the 17th century, Johann Grafius (1633-1693) was a prominent German jurist and legal scholar. He served as a professor of law at the University of Leipzig and authored several influential works on legal theory and practice.

During the 18th century, Johann Christoph Grafius (1701-1767) was a renowned German architect who designed several notable buildings, including the Frauenkirche in Dresden, which was considered one of the finest examples of Protestant church architecture at the time.

In the 19th century, Karl Grafius (1825-1892) was a German-American artist and illustrator who gained recognition for his etchings and engravings depicting scenes from American history and daily life.

While the surname Grafius originated in Germany, it has since spread to other parts of Europe and beyond, carried by generations of individuals who have contributed to various fields throughout history.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Grafius

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Grafius.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Grafius was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Grafius has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Grafius was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Grafius, please contact us.

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!