How common is the surname Wall?

53,794 people in the United States had the surname Wall in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 5,739 Americans. It ranked 631st of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named Wall?

Larry Wall, American computer programmer and author, followed by John Wall.

Where is the surname Wall most common?

Wikidata records people named Wall in the United States.

Is the surname Wall getting more or less common?

Less common. 54,401 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 53,794 in 2010, down 1.1%.

The surname Wall

A surname, carried by 53,794 people in the United States.

1 syllable Soundex W400

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Wall is more common than 99.6% of them.

Origin

Of various origins, principally from Old English wælisc etc. ("non-Germanic speaker, stranger") from Proto-Germanic *walhaz (“foreigner, stranger”), the source of numerous other surnames such as Walsh and Wales and from Middle English wall, from Old English weall (“wall, dike, rampart”), from Proto-Germanic *wallaz or *wallą (“wall, rampart”), from Latin vallum (“wall, rampart, palisade”), from Proto-Indo-European *wel- (“to turn, wind, roll”). Also from transcribed foreign surnames such as German Wahl and Swedish Wahlberg.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 53,794 people named Wall in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 5,739 Americans. That is down 1.1% since 2000, when the Census counted 54,401.

#631

rank among US surnames

53,794

people in 2010

per 100,000 Americans

-1.1%

change since 2000 (was #557)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#622	Singleton	54,621	5,653
#623	Kirk	54,394	5,676
#624	Combs	54,257	5,690
#625	Mathis	54,217	5,695
#626	Christian	54,198	5,697
#627	Skinner	54,046	5,713
#628	Bradford	54,015	5,716

Who is named Wall

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

86% of people named Wall identified as white (not Hispanic), 8.2% as Black (not Hispanic) and 2.3% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).

White (not Hispanic) 86%
Black (not Hispanic) 8.2%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.3%
Two or more races 1.8%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.8%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.8%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Walls

10 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

Larry Wall
American computer programmer and author, born 1954
John Wall
American basketball player (born 1990)
Robin Wall Kimmerer
American environmentalist, born 1953
Paul Wall
American rapper, actor, jewelry designer and DJ from Texas (born 1981)
Robert Wall
American martial artist (1939–2022)
Angus Wall
American film editor and film title designer, born 1967
Rachel Wall
American pirate; last woman hanged in the state of Massachusetts, 1760–1789
Jack Wall
American video game music composer, born 1964
Garret Dorset Wall
American politician (1783-1850)
James Walter Wall
American politician (1820–1872)

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Surnames that sound like Wall

Wall has the Soundex code W400, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code W400.

Questions

Where does the surname Wall come from?: Of various origins, principally from Old English wælisc etc. ("non-Germanic speaker, stranger") from Proto-Germanic *walhaz (“foreigner, stranger”), the source of numerous other surnames such as Walsh and Wales and from Middle English wall, from Old English weall (“wall, dike, rampart”), from…
How common is the surname Wall?: 53,794 people in the United States had the surname Wall in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 5,739 Americans. It ranked 631st of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Wall?: In the 2010 Census, 86% of people named Wall identified as white (not Hispanic), and 8.2% as Black (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named Wall?: Larry Wall, American computer programmer and author, followed by John Wall.
Where is the surname Wall most common?: Wikidata records people named Wall in the United States.
Is the surname Wall getting more or less common?: Less common. 54,401 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 53,794 in 2010, down 1.1%.