Find out how popular the last name Bissell is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Bissell.

Bissell, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Bissell surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Bissell in America

Bissell is the 6701st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Bissell surname appeared 5,039 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Bissell.

We can also compare 2010 data for Bissell to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Bissell

The surname Bissell has its origins in England, specifically in the region of Nottinghamshire. It likely emerged during the late medieval period, around the 13th or 14th century. The name is thought to have derived from the Old English words "byse" and "hyll," which together translate to "dweller by the bushy hill."

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Nottinghamshire from 1198, which mention a Thomas de Bysehyll. The Hundred Rolls of 1273 also reference a Roger de Bishull in the same county. These early spellings, such as Bishull and Bysehyll, reflect the name's evolution over time.

The Bissell surname is believed to have originated as a locational name, referring to individuals who lived near a particular bushy hill or elevated area. In some cases, it may have also been an occupational name for those who lived or worked in areas known for their bushes or shrubs.

One notable figure bearing the Bissell name was Roger Bissell, who lived in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. He was a prominent merchant and landowner in the town of Maidstone, Kent. Another early Bissell of note was John Bissell, born around 1595 in Somerset, who later emigrated to the Massachusetts Bay Colony in the early 1600s, becoming one of the founders of the town of Windsor, Connecticut.

In the 17th century, the name appears in various records, such as the marriage of Josiah Bissell and Sarah Holden in 1664 in Westfield, Massachusetts. William Bissell, born in 1670 in Scituate, Massachusetts, was a notable figure who served as a justice of the peace and a representative in the colonial legislature.

During the 18th century, the Bissell surname continued to spread across the American colonies. One prominent individual was Ezekiel Bissell, born in 1759 in Connecticut, who served as a lieutenant colonel in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War.

While the Bissell name has its roots in England, it has since become widely distributed across various parts of the world, particularly in the United States and other English-speaking countries. However, the earliest recorded instances and historical references trace back to the medieval English origins of this surname.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Bissell

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Bissell.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Bissell was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Bissell has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Bissell was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Bissell, please contact us.

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