2010
#157,234
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 103
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.03
Very Rare Last name
Weltsch
A surname derived from the German term "Weltsch" meaning foreign, cosmopolitan, or related to the world.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 128 Americans carry the last name Weltsch. That puts it at #147,954 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,677,768 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Weltsch 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
128
1 in 2,677,768
Census rank
#147,954
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
112
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 112 bearers of the surname Weltsch in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 147954th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Weltsch, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (8.9%) and Hispanic (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Weltsch
The surname Weltsch is of German origin and can be traced back to the Middle Ages. It is believed to have derived from the German word "Welt," which means "world" or "universe." This might suggest that the name was initially given to someone who had traveled extensively or had a worldly outlook.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Weltsch name can be found in the Rottweil Town Records from the year 1390, where a certain Hainrich Weltsch is mentioned. This document provides evidence that the name was already in use during the late 14th century in the southwestern region of Germany.
Another historical reference to the Weltsch name appears in the Wormser Bürgerbuch (Worms Citizens' Book) from the early 16th century. This document lists a Hans Weltsch as a citizen of the city of Worms in the year 1510.
In the 17th century, the name Weltsch is recorded in the parish registers of the village of Metzingen, located in the present-day state of Baden-Württemberg. The earliest entry dates back to 1624, when a Johannes Weltsch was born.
One notable individual with the Weltsch surname was Johann Baptist Weltsch, a German author and journalist who lived from 1777 to 1853. He was a prominent figure in the early 19th century literary scene and is best known for his satirical writings.
Another noteworthy bearer of the Weltsch name was Robert Weltsch, a Zionist philosopher and writer who was born in Prague in 1891 and died in Jerusalem in 1982. He played a significant role in the Zionist movement and was a vocal advocate for Jewish self-determination in Palestine.
In the realm of academia, Hans Weltsch (1891-1965) was a renowned German-Jewish philosopher and sociologist. He taught at various universities in Germany and the United States and made important contributions to the study of ethics and social theory.
The Weltsch surname can also be found in historical records from other German-speaking regions, such as Austria and Switzerland. For instance, in the 18th century, there are mentions of individuals with the name Weltsch in the parish registers of the town of Bregenz, located in present-day Austria.
While the origins of the Weltsch name can be traced back to Germany, it has since spread to other parts of the world through migration and diaspora. Over the centuries, various spellings and variations of the name have emerged, including Welsch, Weltsche, and Weltscher.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Weltsch
Among Census respondents with the surname Weltsch, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (8.9%) and Hispanic (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Weltsch 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 Weltsch surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White86.6% · 97
- Two or more races8.9% · 10
- Hispanic or Latino1.8% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.8% · 2
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Weltsch
Weltsch 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
#147,954
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
+9 bearers (+8.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 9,280 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #157,234 | 103 | 0.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #147,954 | 112 | 0.04 | +9 bearers (+8.7%) | Up 9,280 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 Weltsch 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 | #157,234 | #147,954 | 5.9% |
| Count | 103 | 112 | 8.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.04 | 24.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Weltsch bearers went from 103 to 112 (+8.7% change). The surname moved up 9,280 positions in the national ranking, going from #157,234 to #147,954.
FAQ
Weltsch surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Weltsch?
Name Census estimates that about 128 living Americans carry the surname Weltsch. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,677,768 residents.
How common is Weltsch?
Weltsch ranks #147,954 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 112 people with the surname Weltsch. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (128), 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 Weltsch.
Has Weltsch become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Weltsch went from 103 recorded bearers to 112. That is an increase of 9 (+8.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #157,234 to #147,954.
What does the Census say about the background of Weltsch?
Among Census respondents with the surname Weltsch, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (8.9%) and Hispanic (1.8%). 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 Weltsch in the 2020 Census, accounting for 86.6% (97 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Weltsch appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (86.6%), Two or More Races (8.9%), Hispanic (1.8%). 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 Weltsch (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 Weltsch mean?
A surname derived from the German term "Weltsch" meaning foreign, cosmopolitan, or related to the world. 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 Weltsch (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 Weltsch?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.