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

Geissler, 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 Geissler surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Geissler in America

Geissler is the 12637th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Geissler surname appeared 2,449 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Geissler.

We can also compare 2010 data for Geissler 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 Geissler

The surname Geissler is of German origin, tracing its roots back to the late medieval period. It is derived from the Middle High German word "geizer," which means "goat herder" or "goatherd." This occupational surname likely originated among families or individuals who worked as goat herders or reared goats for a living.

In its earliest known records, the name appeared with various spellings, including Geysler, Geiszler, and Geissler. These variations reflect the regional dialects and local pronunciations in different parts of German-speaking lands where the name was prevalent.

One of the earliest documented instances of the surname Geissler can be found in the Biberacher Urbaren, a historical register of property owners and tenants from the town of Biberach in southern Germany, dating back to the late 15th century.

As the name spread across different regions, it became associated with certain locations, giving rise to place names like Geisselhardt, a village in Bavaria, and Geisselberg, a hill near the town of Witzenhausen in Hesse.

Notable individuals bearing the surname Geissler include:

1. Christian Gottlieb Geissler (1730-1790), a German physicist and glassblower known for his contributions to the development of vacuum tubes, including the Geissler tube, which bears his name.

2. Johann Georg Geissler (1784-1869), a German architect and builder who designed numerous churches and public buildings in and around Leipzig.

3. Ernst Geissler (1858-1934), a German industrialist and entrepreneur who founded the Geissler company, which manufactured scientific instruments and laboratory equipment.

4. Max Geissler (1868-1945), a German lawyer and politician who served as a member of the Reichstag, the parliament of the German Empire, in the early 20th century.

5. Erwin Geissler (1913-1995), a German athlete and Olympic champion in the decathlon event at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin.

While the Geissler surname may have originated from humble beginnings associated with goat herding, it has since spread across various regions and has been borne by individuals from diverse backgrounds, including scientists, architects, industrialists, politicians, and athletes.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Geissler

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

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!