2000
#148,244
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Welscher
German surname for someone from Wales or with Welsh ancestry.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 124 Americans carry the last name Welscher. That puts it at #150,935 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,764,148 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Welscher 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
124
1 in 2,764,148
Census rank
#150,935
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
108
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 108 bearers of the surname Welscher in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 150935th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Welscher, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.9%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (3.7%) and Two or More Races (3.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Welscher
The surname Welscher originates from Germany, where it first emerged in the 16th century. It is derived from the German word "Welsch," which referred to someone who was either of Italian or French descent or spoke one of those languages. The name likely originated as a descriptive nickname for a person who displayed characteristics associated with these nationalities.
The earliest recorded instances of the Welscher surname can be found in various German records and documents from the 1500s. Some of the earliest known bearers of this name include Hans Welscher, born in Nuremberg in 1532, and Johanna Welscher, born in Stuttgart in 1549.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the Welscher surname began to spread beyond Germany's borders. Notable individuals with this surname include Johann Welscher, a renowned composer from Vienna who lived from 1658 to 1720, and Friedrich Welscher, a prominent philosopher from Heidelberg who was born in 1786 and died in 1869.
In the 19th century, the Welscher surname gained further prominence with the birth of Gustav Welscher, a celebrated German artist born in 1823 in Berlin. His works were widely acclaimed and can be found in various museums across Europe.
Another notable figure was Emilie Welscher, a pioneering female scientist born in 1848 in Frankfurt. She made significant contributions to the field of chemistry and was one of the first women to be admitted to the prestigious University of Heidelberg.
As the Welscher surname continued to spread throughout Europe, it also found its way to other parts of the world. One example is Johannes Welscher, a Dutch explorer born in 1795 who was among the first Europeans to map and document parts of the Australian outback in the early 19th century.
While the surname Welscher is relatively uncommon today, it has a rich historical legacy that spans several centuries and various regions of the world. Its origins can be traced back to the German language and culture, and it has been borne by individuals from diverse backgrounds, including artists, scientists, composers, and explorers.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Welscher
Among Census respondents with the surname Welscher, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.9%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (3.7%) and Two or More Races (3.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Welscher 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 Welscher surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.9% · 96
- American Indian and Alaska Native3.7% · 4
- Two or more races3.7% · 4
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 3
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Welscher
Welscher 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
#148,347
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
+9 bearers (+8.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 103 places
2020
#150,935
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 108
-3 bearers (-2.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 2,588 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #148,244 | 102 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #148,347 | 111 | 0.04 | +9 bearers (+8.8%) | Down 103 places |
| 2020 | #150,935 | 108 | 0.04 | -3 bearers (-2.7%) | Down 2,588 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 Welscher 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 | #148,347 | #150,935 | -1.7% |
| Count | 111 | 108 | -2.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -9.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Welscher bearers went from 111 to 108 (-2.7% change). The surname moved down 2,588 positions in the national ranking, going from #148,347 to #150,935.
FAQ
Welscher surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Welscher?
Name Census estimates that about 124 living Americans carry the surname Welscher. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,764,148 residents.
How common is Welscher?
Welscher ranks #150,935 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 108 people with the surname Welscher. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (124), 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 Welscher.
Has Welscher become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Welscher went from 111 recorded bearers to 108. That is a decrease of 3 (-2.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #148,347 to #150,935.
What does the Census say about the background of Welscher?
Among Census respondents with the surname Welscher, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.9%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (3.7%) and Two or More Races (3.7%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Welscher in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.9% (96 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Welscher appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.9%), American Indian/Alaska Native (3.7%), Two or More Races (3.7%). 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 Welscher (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 Welscher mean?
German surname for someone from Wales or with Welsh ancestry. 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 Welscher (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 common is the surname Welscher?
For a quick modern take, check how common the surname Welscher is on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.