How common is the surname Curtis?

101,801 people in the United States had the surname Curtis in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 3,033 Americans. It ranked 309th of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named Curtis?

Tony Curtis, American actor (1925–2010), followed by Jamie Lee Curtis.

Where is the surname Curtis most common?

Wikidata records people named Curtis in the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia.

How do you pronounce Curtis?

Curtis is /ˈkɝtɪs/, 2 syllables.

Is the surname Curtis getting more or less common?

More common. 98,958 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 101,801 in 2010, up 2.9%.

Is Curtis also a first name?

Yes. Curtis is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.

The surname Curtis

A nickname surname, carried by 101,801 people in the United States.

Pronounced /ˈkɝtɪs/ 2 syllables Soundex C632 Also a first name

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Curtis is more common than 99.8% of them.

Origin

From Old French corteis and curteis (Modern French courtois (“polite, courteous”). Doublet of courteous.

Curtis is a nickname surname: from a description or nickname of an ancestor.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 101,801 people named Curtis in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 3,033 Americans. That is up 2.9% since 2000, when the Census counted 98,958.

#309

rank among US surnames

101,801

people in 2010

per 100,000 Americans

+2.9%

change since 2000 (was #280)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#300	Mejia	104,057	2,967
#301	Davidson	103,930	2,971
#302	Acosta	103,418	2,985
#303	Brewer	103,318	2,988
#304	May	103,306	2,989
#305	Holland	102,538	3,011
#306	Juarez	101,949	3,028

Who is named Curtis

Race and Hispanic origin as people reported it in the 2010 Census

78% of people named Curtis identified as white (not Hispanic), 16% as Black (not Hispanic) and 2.6% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).

White (not Hispanic) 78%
Black (not Hispanic) 16%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.6%
Two or more races 2.1%
American Indian and Alaska Native 1.0%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.5%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Curtiss

44 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

Tony Curtis
American actor (1925–2010)
Jamie Lee Curtis
American actress and author, born 1958
Heber Doust Curtis
American astronomer (1872-1942)
Thomas Curtis
American athlete (1873–1944)
Edward S. Curtis
American photographer (1868-1952)
Ann Curtis
American swimmer, 1926–2012
Kelly Curtis
American actress, 1956–2026
Ken Curtis
American actor and singer (1916–1991)
Alan Curtis
American actor (1909-1953)
John R. Curtis
American politician (born 1960)
Adam Curtis
British documentary filmmaker (born 1955)
Robin Curtis
American actress, born 1956

Notable Curtiss come mostly from the United States (39), the United Kingdom (3) and Australia (2).

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Variant spellings

Curtiss

Surnames that sound like Curtis

Curtis has the Soundex code C632, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code C632.

Questions

Where does the surname Curtis come from?: From Old French corteis and curteis (Modern French courtois (“polite, courteous”). Doublet of courteous.
How common is the surname Curtis?: 101,801 people in the United States had the surname Curtis in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 3,033 Americans. It ranked 309th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Curtis?: In the 2010 Census, 78% of people named Curtis identified as white (not Hispanic), and 16% as Black (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named Curtis?: Tony Curtis, American actor (1925–2010), followed by Jamie Lee Curtis.
Where is the surname Curtis most common?: Wikidata records people named Curtis in the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia.
How do you pronounce Curtis?: Curtis is /ˈkɝtɪs/, 2 syllables.
What type of surname is Curtis?: Curtis is a nickname surname, from a description or nickname of an ancestor.
Is the surname Curtis getting more or less common?: More common. 98,958 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 101,801 in 2010, up 2.9%.
What are other spellings of Curtis?: Curtiss.
Is Curtis also a first name?: Yes. Curtis is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.