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

Blees, 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 Blees surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Blees in America

Blees is the 80131st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Blees surname appeared 237 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Blees.

We can also compare 2010 data for Blees 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 Blees

The surname BLEES is believed to have originated in Germany, with records dating back to the 16th century. It is thought to be derived from the Old German word "blees," which means "pale" or "light-skinned." This name may have been given as a descriptive nickname to someone with a fair complexion.

One of the earliest known references to the surname BLEES can be found in the records of the town of Heidelberg, where a certain Johann BLEES was mentioned in a document from 1587. There are also records of a family by the name of BLEES residing in the village of Niederbronn, in the Alsace region of present-day France, in the late 16th century.

The BLEES surname is also found in various historical records from other parts of Germany, such as the states of Baden-Württemberg and Rhineland-Palatinate. One notable figure was Hans BLEES, a merchant from the town of Mainz, who was born in 1625 and is mentioned in several trade documents from the mid-17th century.

In the 18th century, the BLEES name appears in records from the city of Berlin, where a family headed by a man named Friedrich BLEES is listed in the city's census of 1743. Another notable figure from this period was Johann BLEES, a scholar and author born in 1712 in the town of Weingarten, who wrote several books on theology and philosophy.

As the BLEES family spread across Germany and neighboring regions, variations in the spelling of the name emerged, including BLIESS, BLIES, and BLIESE. Some of these variations may have been influenced by the geography of the areas where the name was found, such as the Blies River in the Saarland region of Germany.

One of the most famous individuals to bear the BLEES surname was the German painter and etcher, Carl BLEES, who lived from 1796 to 1858. He was born in the town of Bamberg and is known for his landscape paintings and etchings of scenes from the Bavarian countryside.

Another notable figure was the German botanist and naturalist, Johann Heinrich BLEES, who was born in 1807 in the town of Wittlich and made significant contributions to the study of plant life in the Rhineland region.

While the BLEES surname is not as common today as it once was, it remains a part of the rich cultural heritage of Germany and the surrounding areas, with a history that can be traced back several centuries.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Blees

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

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 Blees 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 Blees 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 Blees was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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