2000
#136,783
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Wilzbach
A surname derived from a place name in Germany.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 132 Americans carry the last name Wilzbach. That puts it at #145,757 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,596,624 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Wilzbach 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
132
1 in 2,596,624
Census rank
#145,757
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
115
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 115 bearers of the surname Wilzbach in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 145757th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Wilzbach, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Wilzbach
The surname Wilzbach can trace its origins to Germany, with indications pointing to the early medieval period, around the 12th or 13th century. The name Wilzbach is believed to be a combination of the Germanic elements "Wilz," possible derived from "Wilhelm," meaning "will or desire," and "bach," meaning "stream or brook." Thus, the surname most likely refers to a "stream of Wilhelm" or "Wilhelm's brook."
Wilzbach is geographically associated with regions in Germany where small streams and brooks are common, particularly in areas like Rhineland-Palatinate and Bavaria. Surnames deriving from natural features were commonplace in medieval times as they helped in specifying locations and landholdings.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Wilzbach appears in a 14th-century document found in the Rhineland. In 1372, a legal manuscript refers to a man named Heinrich von Wilzbach who was a landholder near the Moselle River. This validates the notion that the surname could have topographical and nobility associations.
By the 15th century, records indicate a Johannes Wilzbach who served as a cleric in the Diocese of Mainz. His contributions to the church and local governance were noted in ecclesiastical records. Though not widely known, his presence in historical documents provides insight into the social status of individuals bearing this surname in medieval Germany.
In the 16th century, the name Wilzbach appeared in tax records from the town of Wilzbach in Bavaria. A notable individual from this period was Hans Wilzbach, who was a merchant and is recorded in 1587 for his contributions to the economic development of the area. His business dealings entailed trade between towns riding along the Regnitz River.
In the 18th century, another mention of the surname arises in Hesse, where a Gustav Wilzbach served in the Hessian regiment. Born in 1734 and proving to be a capable soldier, Gustav's military career is detailed in military dispatches from the period leading up to the American Revolutionary War, where Hessian troops served as auxiliary forces.
Historically, the Wilzbach surname extends to scientific achievements as well. In the early 19th century, Friedrich Wilzbach, born in 1801, was known for his contributions to botanical studies, with several plant species documented in academic journals of the time bearing his annotations.
Throughout its history, the surname Wilzbach has been linked with individuals of various professions from landholders and clerics to merchants, soldiers, and scholars. This name, though not excessively common, has a storied presence in the European historical framework, dating back several centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Wilzbach
Among Census respondents with the surname Wilzbach, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Wilzbach 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 Wilzbach surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White96.5% · 111
- Two or more races2.6% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Wilzbach
Wilzbach 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
#139,228
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 120
+7 bearers (+6.2%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 2,445 places
2020
#145,757
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
-5 bearers (-4.2%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 6,529 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #136,783 | 113 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #139,228 | 120 | 0.04 | +7 bearers (+6.2%) | Down 2,445 places |
| 2020 | #145,757 | 115 | 0.04 | -5 bearers (-4.2%) | Down 6,529 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 Wilzbach 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 | #139,228 | #145,757 | -4.7% |
| Count | 120 | 115 | -4.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -3.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Wilzbach bearers went from 120 to 115 (-4.2% change). The surname moved down 6,529 positions in the national ranking, going from #139,228 to #145,757.
FAQ
Wilzbach surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Wilzbach?
Name Census estimates that about 132 living Americans carry the surname Wilzbach. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,596,624 residents.
How common is Wilzbach?
Wilzbach ranks #145,757 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 115 people with the surname Wilzbach. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (132), 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 Wilzbach.
Has Wilzbach become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Wilzbach went from 120 recorded bearers to 115. That is a decrease of 5 (-4.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #139,228 to #145,757.
What does the Census say about the background of Wilzbach?
Among Census respondents with the surname Wilzbach, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.9%). 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 Wilzbach in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.5% (111 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Wilzbach appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (96.5%), Two or More Races (2.6%), Asian/Pacific Islander (0.9%). 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 Wilzbach (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 Wilzbach mean?
A surname derived from a place name in Germany. 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 Wilzbach (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 Wilzbach?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.