SCHULZ
Schulz is a surname of German origin that has become one of the most common names within Germany and has spread throughout Europe and North America. Its earliest linguistic roots lie in Middle High German, where the word schultheize referred to a village headman or mayor.
The original occupational meaning was that of a collectress of dues and taxes on behalf of a feudal lord. By the thirteenth century the term had narrowed to describe the person who held the highest local office – the head man, alderman or magistrate of a village or town. The succinctness of the name made it a natural surname for those who served in such posts.
Schulz is recorded in more than forty spelling variants, including Schult, Schulter, Schulz, Schultz, Schultze, Schulthe, Schulthiss, Scholtis, Schulte, Schout, Soltys, Sule, Sole, Scholzel, Schuling, Schouteden and the Polish form Szulczewski. These variations appear in charters and registers dated from the twelfth to the fifteenth centuries in areas such as Hamburg (Godescalus Sculte, 1249), Zurich (Cuonradus Scultus, 1258), Chemnitz (Nicolas Schultetus, 1357) and near Stolp (Klaus Schultz, 1476).
In medieval Germany, the generic title schultheiss was applied to a town elder or magistrate, a status that later passed into surname form. Variants influenced by local dialects – for instance Schultheiss in southern Germany and Austria, or Schultz in northern dialects – reflect the spread of the name across German‑speaking regions.
Today Schulz remains highly prevalent. In Germany it is ranked fourteenth in commonality, and it was one of the most frequent names in the former East German states. In Austria the surname holds the twentieth most popular position, while in Sweden it is ranked one hundred and thirtieth and in Norway it is thirty‑third. Across the United States, the 2000 census recorded it as the one hundred and sixty‑sixth most common surname, with sixty‑six thousand five hundred and eighty‑five bearers, a figure that remains consistent in the Midwest and northern states.
The diffusion of the name into Scandinavia and the Netherlands has produced further localised spellings such as Scholte, Scholten, Scholens, and Schulty. In English‑speaking contexts American families often adopt the variant Schultz, which aligns closely with the original German spelling but reflects orthographic simplification.
Typical given names associated with the Schulz surname
Male
- Andrew
- Christian
- David
- Julian
- Mark
- Martin
- Michael
- Paul
- Peter
- Robert
- Stephen
- Thomas
Female
- Alexandra
- Barbara
- Christine
- Cornelia
- Elizabeth
- Joan
- Linda
- Nicola
- Pamela
- Susan
- Susanne
- Tanja
- Tatjana
- Terri
Similar and related surnames
- Chul
- Chull
- Chouls
- Chulu
- Chula
- Schul
- Schulze
- Chouli
- Cicalese
- Saculles
- Sakalas
- Sakalis
- Sakalys
- Sakelis
- Sakellis
- Sakels
- Sakoulas
- Scailes
- Scalas
- Scales
- Scalese
- Scalici
- Scalise
- Scalisi
- Scalzi
- Scalzo
- Schales
- Schilizzi
- Schillace
- Schillaci
- Schillizzi
- Schils
- Schilz
- Schleiss
- Schless
- Schloessa
- Schloss
- Schoales
- Schoelles
- Scholas
- Scholes
- Scholles
- Scholls
- Schols
- Scholz
- Scholze
- Schooles
- Schools
- Schu
- Schuhl
- Schuld
- Schuldt
- Schulga
- Schull
- Schully
- Schulp
- Schult
- Schulte
- Schults
- Schultz
- Schuly
- Schuz
- Scoales
- Scoals
- Scoiles
- Scoles
- Scoules
- Sekales
- Sekules
- Shoul
- Shouli
- Shouls
- Shull
- Shulls
- Shulz
- Shulze
- Sickels
- Sickles
- Sigalas
- Sigallias
- Sigalos
- Siklos
- Siklosi
- Skailes
- Skales
- Skeales
- Skeals
- Skeeles
- Skeels
- Skeils
- Skells
- Skiles
- Skills
- Skoulas
- Skoyles
- Skuls
- Skyles
- Sokolis
- Squillace
Related and similar names are generated algorithmically based on the spelling, and may not necessarily share an etymology.
How to communicate the surname Schulz in...
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Morse
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There are approximately 666 people named Schulz in the UK. That makes it one of Britain's least common surnames. Only around ten in a million people in Britain are named Schulz.
Region of origin: Europe
Country of origin: Germany
Language of origin: German
Famous people named Schulz
- Charles M. Schulz - American cartoonist (1922 to 2000)
Names and descriptions courtesy of Wikipedia, and may contain errors. This is not intended to be an exhaustive list of every famous person with this name.