How common is the surname Wolf?

70,031 people in the United States had the surname Wolf in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 4,409 Americans. It ranked 474th of 162,253 surnames.

What ethnicity is the surname Wolf?

In the 2010 Census, 94% of people named Wolf identified as white (not Hispanic), and 2.2% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).

Who is the most famous person named Wolf?

Hugo Wolf, Austrian composer (1860–1903), followed by Naomi Wolf.

Where is the surname Wolf most common?

Wikidata records people named Wolf in the United States, Austria and Austria–Hungary and 3 other countries.

Is the surname Wolf getting more or less common?

More common. 68,905 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 70,031 in 2010, up 1.6%.

Is Wolf also a first name?

Yes. Wolf 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 Wolf

An English patronymic surname, carried by 70,031 people in the United States.

1 syllable Soundex W410 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). Wolf is more common than 99.7% of them.

Origin

English origin

From Middle English and German short forms of given names containing the Germanic element "wolf".

Wolf is a patronymic surname: formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.

One of 1,446 English surnames on this site.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 70,031 people named Wolf in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 4,409 Americans. That is up 1.6% since 2000, when the Census counted 68,905.

#474

rank among US surnames

70,031

people in 2010

per 100,000 Americans

+1.6%

change since 2000 (was #427)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#465	Malone	71,286	4,331
#466	Cannon	71,085	4,343
#467	Tate	71,058	4,345
#468	Mack	71,056	4,345
#469	Sherman	70,502	4,379
#470	Hubbard	70,362	4,388
#471	Hodges	70,223	4,397

Who is named Wolf

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

94% of people named Wolf identified as white (not Hispanic), 2.2% as Hispanic or Latino (any race) and 1.5% as two or more races.

White (not Hispanic) 94%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.2%
Two or more races 1.5%
Black (not Hispanic) 1.1%
American Indian and Alaska Native 1.1%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.6%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Wolfs

37 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

Hugo Wolf
Austrian composer (1860–1903)
Naomi Wolf
American feminist and journalist (born 1962)
David Wolf
American astronaut, born 1956
Dick Wolf
American television producer (born 1946)
Hillary Wolf
American actor and judoka, born 1977
Sigrid Wolf
Alpine skier, born 1964
Eric Wolf
American anthropologist (1923-1999)
Hannes Wolf
Austrian footballer, born 1999
Frank Wolf
American politician, born 1939
Wally Wolf
American swimmer (1930-1997)
J.J. Wolf
American tennis player (born 1998)
Austin Wolf
American pornographic actor, born 1983

Notable Wolfs come mostly from the United States (25), Austria (8) and Austria–Hungary (1).

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Surnames that sound like Wolf

Wolf has the Soundex code W410, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code W410.

Other English surnames

All 1,446 English surnames

Questions

Where does the surname Wolf come from?: From Middle English and German short forms of given names containing the Germanic element "wolf".
How common is the surname Wolf?: 70,031 people in the United States had the surname Wolf in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 4,409 Americans. It ranked 474th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Wolf?: In the 2010 Census, 94% of people named Wolf identified as white (not Hispanic), and 2.2% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).
Who is the most famous person named Wolf?: Hugo Wolf, Austrian composer (1860–1903), followed by Naomi Wolf.
Where is the surname Wolf most common?: Wikidata records people named Wolf in the United States, Austria and Austria–Hungary and 3 other countries.
What type of surname is Wolf?: Wolf is a patronymic surname, formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.
Is the surname Wolf getting more or less common?: More common. 68,905 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 70,031 in 2010, up 1.6%.
Is Wolf also a first name?: Yes. Wolf 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.