# Fortescue (surname)

Source: https://namelineage.com/surname/fortescue/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. Counts from the US Census Bureau; origin and etymology from Wiktionary; bearers from Wikidata. Data updated 2026-11-11.

A surname.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Origin | not recorded |
| Type | not recorded |
| People in the US (2010 Census) | 201 |
| US rank (2010) | 91,625 of 162,253 |
| How often | about 1 in every 1,536,047 people |
| Change since 2000 | +3.6% (194 in 2000) |
| Pronunciation | /ˈfɔɹtəskjuː/, 2 syllables |
| Variant spellings | none recorded |

## Etymology

From Anglo-Norman Fortescu, from Old Northern French Fort-Escu, from Old French fort + escut. Literally, “strong shield”.

## Who carries it

Share of people named Fortescue in the 2010 US Census by the Census's own race and ethnicity groups. The Census suppresses a share when the count behind it is small.

| Group | Share |
|---|---|
| White (not Hispanic) | 95% |
| Black (not Hispanic) | 0.0% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 2.5% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 0.0% |

## Where

Wikidata records people named Fortescue in the United Kingdom.

## People named Fortescue

- Eleanor Fortescue-Brickdale, British artist (1872-1945)
- Michael Fortescue, British-born linguist

## Similar surnames

Fortson, Fortes, Fritz, Freitas, Fritts, Freitag, Fritsch, Fordyce, Fritch, Fritsche, Fertig, Fretz.

## How to read these numbers

A Census count is people alive and counted in 2010, not births, and names occurring fewer than 100 times are not published at all. Ethnicity shares are the Census's own categories.