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

Gritz, 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 Gritz surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Gritz in America

Gritz is the 37792nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Gritz surname appeared 588 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 Gritz.

We can also compare 2010 data for Gritz 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 Gritz

The surname Gritz has its origins in Germany, first appearing in records from the 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the German word "Grütze," which refers to a type of porridge or gruel made from grains like oats or barley. This suggests that the name may have initially been an occupational surname for someone who prepared or sold this type of food.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Gritz can be found in the Kirchenbücher (church records) of the town of Neunkirchen in Saxony, Germany, from the year 1562. Here, a man named Hans Gritz is mentioned as a resident of the town.

In the 17th century, the name appears in various parts of Germany, including the regions of Saxony, Thuringia, and Brandenburg. During this time, the spelling variations "Grütze" and "Grytze" were also used.

The Gritz surname is also linked to several place names in Germany, such as Gritzingen (now part of Rheinau) and Grötzingen (a district of Karlsruhe). These place names likely originated from personal names derived from the same root as the surname Gritz.

One notable individual with the surname Gritz was Johann Gritz, a German author and theologian born in 1592 in Saxony. He wrote several religious works and served as a pastor in various churches throughout Germany.

Another historical figure was Johann Friedrich Gritz, a German composer and organist who lived from 1691 to 1761. He was known for his compositions for organ and church music.

In the 19th century, the name appears in records from the United States, likely due to German immigration. One example is John Gritz, a farmer born in Pennsylvania in 1820 to German immigrant parents.

Another notable individual was Carl Gritz, a German-American artist born in 1854 in Saxony. He immigrated to the United States and became known for his landscape paintings of the American West.

Finally, Friedrich Gritz, a German-American soldier born in 1848 in Bavaria, served in the Union Army during the American Civil War and later settled in Illinois.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Gritz

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

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 Gritz 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 Gritz 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 Gritz was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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