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

Woolfolk, 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 Woolfolk surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Woolfolk in America

Woolfolk is the 9827th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Woolfolk surname appeared 3,295 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 Woolfolk.

We can also compare 2010 data for Woolfolk 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 Woolfolk

The surname Woolfolk is believed to have originated in England during the Anglo-Saxon era. It is derived from the Old English words "wull" meaning wool and "folc" meaning people or folk, referring to individuals or families involved in the wool trade or textile industry.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Wulfolc." This entry suggests that the name existed in various forms during the Norman conquest of England.

In the 12th century, the name appeared in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire as "Wlfolc" and "Wlfeloc." These records indicate the presence of individuals bearing the name in the northern regions of England.

By the 13th century, the spelling had evolved to more closely resemble the modern form, appearing as "Wolefolk" in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire in 1273.

Notable individuals with the surname Woolfolk throughout history include:

1. John Woolfolk (c. 1600-1672), an early English settler in Virginia, United States, who arrived in 1635 and became a prominent landowner and planter.

2. Thomas Woolfolk (1766-1839), an American politician and lawyer who served as a U.S. Representative from Kentucky from 1825 to 1829.

3. Sarah Woolfolk Wiggins (1776-1857), an American pioneer and one of the first white settlers in what later became the state of Texas.

4. William Woolfolk (1810-1879), an American politician and lawyer who served as a U.S. Representative from Tennessee from 1849 to 1851.

5. Jane Woolfolk Baker (1838-1917), an American author and poet, known for her work on the history and folklore of Virginia.

The surname Woolfolk has also been associated with various place names in England, such as Woolfolk Green in Nottinghamshire and Woolfolk Farm in Lincolnshire, further indicating its long-standing presence in the region.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Woolfolk

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

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

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

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