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

Retzlaff, 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 Retzlaff surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Retzlaff in America

Retzlaff is the 13166th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Retzlaff surname appeared 2,322 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Retzlaff.

We can also compare 2010 data for Retzlaff 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 Retzlaff

The surname Retzlaff has its origins in Germany, where it is believed to have emerged around the 13th century. It is derived from the German words 'retz' meaning lattice or grating, and 'laff' which refers to a clearing or open area in a forest. This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone who lived near a fenced or latticed clearing in a wooded area.

Early records suggest that the name was most prevalent in the regions of Saxony and Brandenburg, where it is thought to have originated. One of the earliest known references to the name can be found in the Staatsarchiv Düsseldorf, which contains records of a Henrich Retzlaff living in the town of Solingen in 1428.

The name appears to have spread throughout northern Germany and into neighboring regions in the following centuries. Variations in spelling, such as Retzlav, Retzloff, and Retzlaw, can be found in historical documents from this period.

One notable early bearer of the name was Johann Retzlaff, a Lutheran pastor and theologian who lived from 1554 to 1621. He served as the rector of the St. Marien Gymnasium in Stettin (now Szczecin, Poland) and was a vocal opponent of the Catholic Church during the Reformation.

Another historical figure was Christoph Retzlaff, a German soldier and mercenary who fought in the Thirty Years' War (1618-1648). He is believed to have been born in the late 16th century and served under various military commanders throughout the conflict.

In the 18th century, Friedrich Wilhelm Retzlaff (1712-1784) was a prominent merchant and shipowner based in the city of Lübeck. He played a significant role in the city's maritime trade and was a member of the influential Merchants' Guild.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name in North America was that of Johann Retzlaff, who immigrated to Pennsylvania from Germany in the mid-18th century. He settled in the area known as the Pennsylvania Dutch Country and is listed in colonial records as a farmer and landowner.

In the 19th century, Carl Retzlaff (1813-1892) was a German-American musician and composer who gained recognition for his contributions to the development of American music education. He served as the director of music at several colleges and published numerous instructional works for vocal and instrumental music.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Retzlaff

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

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

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Retzlaff, 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!