The Wilhelm surname
In the 2000 U.S. Census, 19,664 people carried this name — #1,666 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 13,700 people counted.
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In France’s civil register
France’s register of deaths holds 2,062 people named Wilhelm.
91 of them were born outside France. Those born in France came from 66 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 Switzerland’s population statistics
1,521 people named Wilhelm live in Switzerland.
They live in 24 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Zurich.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO), «Surnames of the permanent resident population by canton», 2025, opendata.swiss · names with fewer than 3 bearers in a canton are not published.
In Poland’s population register
355 people named Wilhelm have a registered home in Poland.
Of the 484 in Poland’s national register, these are the ones with a permanent address on file. They live in 15 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 print
Wilhelm in American newspapers,
1857–1954.
Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 392,629 pages in all carry the name.
Who carried it
People named Wilhelm,
with a public archive behind them.
-
Ferdinand Willem, Duke of Württemberg-Neuenstadt 1659–1701 · military leader -
Wilhem 1781–1842 · composer -
Carl Wilhelm 1815–1873 · composer -
Joseph Wilhelm 1845–1920 · cleric -
Richard Wilhelm 1873–1930 · writer
Wikidata and Wikimedia Commons (CC0) · 165 lives in all are documented under this name.
Nearby in the index
Surnames next to Wilhelm.
- Wieser 1,595 · U.S. census
- Wiest 3,442 · U.S. census
- Wilbert 2,850 · U.S. census
- Wilczynski 1,422 · U.S. census
- Wild 8,091 · U.S. census
- Wildermuth 1,654 · U.S. census
- Wilk 5,662 · U.S. census
- Wilke 7,841 · U.S. census
- Wilkinson 52,483 · U.S. census
- Will 13,177 · U.S. census
- Willaert 218 · U.S. census
- Willard 21,183 · U.S. census
When the index is not enough
This page says where Wilhelm 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.