2000
#1,401
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 23,195
First available Census row
Per 100,000 8.60
Uncommon Last name
Feldman
An occupational surname referring to a field worker or one who lives near or works in fields.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 25,282 Americans carry the last name Feldman. That puts it at #1,589 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 7.38 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 13,557 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Feldman surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Feldman with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
25K
1 in 13,557
Census rank
#1,589
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
7.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
22K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 22,047 bearers of the surname Feldman in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 7.38 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1589th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Feldman, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.9%) and Two or More Races (2.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Feldman
The surname Feldman is of German origin, derived from the Middle High German words "velt" meaning "field" and "man" meaning "man." It first emerged in the 13th century as an occupational name for someone who lived or worked in fields, likely as a farmer or agricultural laborer.
The earliest known record of the surname Feldman dates back to the 14th century in the town of Nuremberg, Bavaria. It appears in a manuscript from 1347 as "Hans Veltman," referring to a local landowner.
During the Middle Ages, the Feldman name was primarily concentrated in the southern regions of Germany, particularly in Bavaria and neighboring areas. Variations in spelling included Veltman, Feltman, and Feldtman, reflecting regional dialects and scribal inconsistencies.
One of the earliest notable individuals with the Feldman surname was Johannes Feldmann (c. 1490 - 1558), a German Lutheran theologian and reformer who played a significant role in the Protestant Reformation. He was a close associate of Martin Luther and served as a professor at the University of Wittenberg.
In the 17th century, the Feldman name gained prominence in the Netherlands, likely due to migration from Germany. One example is Willem Feldmann (1616 - 1668), a Dutch Golden Age painter known for his still-life paintings and landscapes.
As the Feldman family spread across Europe, the name appeared in various historical records and documents. For instance, the Domesday Book of 1086, a survey of landowners in England commissioned by William the Conqueror, includes a reference to a landowner named "Alured de Feldemannesvurde" in Warwickshire, possibly an early precursor to the Feldman name.
Other notable individuals with the Feldman surname include:
1. Anatole Feldman (1891 - 1948), a Russian-born French artist and painter associated with the Cubist movement.
2. Morton Feldman (1926 - 1987), an American composer and a major figure in the avant-garde movement of the 20th century.
3. Sylvia Feldman (1925 - 2011), an American abstract expressionist painter and educator.
4. François Feldman (born 1942), a French singer and actor known for his successful music career in the 1960s and 1970s.
5. Corinne Feldman (born 1964), an American novelist and screenwriter, best known for her work on the television series "Dawson's Creek" and "Life Unexpected."
While the Feldman surname has its roots in medieval Germany, it has since spread across Europe and beyond, carrying a rich history and diverse cultural influences over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Feldman
Among Census respondents with the surname Feldman, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.9%) and Two or More Races (2.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Feldman bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Feldman surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.5% · 20,395
- Hispanic or Latino3.9% · 851
- Two or more races2.2% · 492
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 183
- Black or African American0.5% · 105
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 21
Timeline
Historical Census data for Feldman
Feldman appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#1,540
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 23,356
+161 bearers (+0.7%)
Per 100,000 7.92
Rank movement Down 139 places
2020
#1,589
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 22,047
-1,309 bearers (-5.6%)
Per 100,000 7.38
Rank movement Down 49 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,401 | 23,195 | 8.60 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,540 | 23,356 | 7.92 | +161 bearers (+0.7%) | Down 139 places |
| 2020 | #1,589 | 22,047 | 7.38 | -1,309 bearers (-5.6%) | Down 49 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Feldman surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #1,540 | #1,589 | -3.2% |
| Count | 23,356 | 22,047 | -5.6% |
| Per 100K | 7.92 | 7.38 | -6.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Feldman bearers went from 23,356 to 22,047 (-5.6% change). The surname moved down 49 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,540 to #1,589.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Feldman
FAQ
Feldman surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Feldman?
Name Census estimates that about 25,282 living Americans carry the surname Feldman. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 13,557 residents.
How common is Feldman?
Feldman ranks #1,589 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 7.38 per 100,000 residents, which is about 7 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 22,047 people with the surname Feldman. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (25,282), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 7.38 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 7.38 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 7 of them to have the surname Feldman.
Has Feldman become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Feldman went from 23,356 recorded bearers to 22,047. That is a decrease of 1,309 (-5.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,540 to #1,589.
What does the Census say about the background of Feldman?
Among Census respondents with the surname Feldman, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.9%) and Two or More Races (2.2%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Feldman in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.5% (20,395 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Feldman appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.5%), Hispanic (3.9%), Two or More Races (2.2%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Feldman (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Feldman mean?
An occupational surname referring to a field worker or one who lives near or works in fields. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Feldman (7.38 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How common is the surname Feldman?
Find out how many people have the surname Feldman on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.