The Kurtz surname
In the 2010 U.S. Census, 24,216 people carried this name — #1,476 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 12,200 people counted. That is up 3% from 23,488 in 2000.
Where the name comes from
The origin of the Kurtz surname
A male surname from German.
Unadapted borrowing from German Kurtz.
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Kurtz» (Polish), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.
In France’s civil register
France’s register of deaths holds 921 people named Kurtz.
41 of them were born outside France. Those born in France came from 43 départements, most often Moselle.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they were born
Fichier des personnes décédées, INSEE — Licence Ouverte 2.0 · deaths recorded in France since 1970, by place of birth.
In Argentina’s national register
At least 310 people named Kurtz live in Argentina.
RENAPER only publishes a name in a province when more than ten people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Buenos Aires Province.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.
In Poland’s population register
176 people named Kurtz have a registered home in Poland.
Of the 253 in Poland’s national register, these are the ones with a permanent address on file. They live in 9 of Poland’s 16 voivodeships, most of all in Opole.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
PESEL register, Ministry of Digital Affairs of Poland (dane.gov.pl) — CC0 · living people by voivodeship of permanent residence, 20 January 2026.
In Switzerland’s population statistics
119 people named Kurtz live in Switzerland.
They live in 12 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Zurich.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they live today
Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO), «Surnames of the permanent resident population by canton», 2025, opendata.swiss/en/dataset/nachnamen-der-standigen-wohnbevolkerung-nach-kanton3 · names with fewer than 3 bearers in a canton are not published.
In the Nordic population registers
35 people named Kurtz is counted in Sweden.
Sweden’s figure is from 31 December 2022, the last count Statistics Sweden published.
Counted, by country
Own calculations based on data from Statistics Sweden (SCB), surnames with at least two bearers, 31 December 2022 — CC BY 4.0 (names with 20 or more bearers shown).
In print
Kurtz in American newspapers,
1888–1916.
Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 97,122 pages in all carry the name.
Who carried it
People named Kurtz,
with a public archive behind them.
-
Johann Kurtz 1470– · author -
Benjamin Kurtz 1795–1865 · pastor -
David B. Kurtz 1819–1898 · politician -
William Kurtz 1833–1904 · photographer -
Mike Kurtz 1845–1904
Wikidata and Wikimedia Commons (CC0) · 180 lives in all are documented under this name.
Nearby in the index
Surnames next to Kurtz.
When the index is not enough
This page says where Kurtz is.
A volume says what happened to it.
Every page in the index is free and stays free. The Heritage Volume is the long form: the full paper trail, the arms, the crossing — bound, and yours.