Gensler last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Gensler

A habitational surname derived from a place name in Germany.

Gensler, 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 Gensler surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Gensler in America

Gensler is the 21940th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Gensler surname appeared 1,183 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 Gensler.

We can also compare 2010 data for Gensler 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 21940 17799 20.84%
Count 1,183 1,450 -20.28%
Proportion per 100k 0.40 0.54 -29.79%

The history of the last name Gensler

The surname "GENSLER" is of German origin and dates back to the Middle Ages. It is believed to have originated as a habitational name for someone from a place called "Genseln" or "Gensler," possibly derived from the German word "Gans," meaning "goose."

The earliest recorded instances of the name can be traced back to the 14th century in southern Germany and parts of Switzerland. It is likely that the name initially referred to someone who lived near a goose farm or a place where geese were raised.

In the 15th century, there are records of a family named Gensler in the town of Augsburg, Bavaria. One notable member was Hans Gensler (c. 1420-1490), a merchant and town councilor who played a significant role in the economic and political affairs of the city.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, the name spread across various regions of Germany and neighboring countries. In 1587, a record mentions a Johannes Gensler, a farmer from the village of Dornstetten in the Black Forest region of what is now Baden-Württemberg.

The name also appears in historical records from the 18th and 19th centuries. In 1723, a Johann Gensler (1695-1761) was born in Schönberg, Bavaria. He later became a respected teacher and author of several educational books.

Another notable figure was Friedrich Gensler (1799-1876), a German jurist and politician who served as the Minister of Justice for the Kingdom of Württemberg in the mid-19th century.

During the 19th century, many Genslers emigrated from Germany to other parts of the world, including the United States and Canada. One prominent individual was August Gensler (1838-1919), a German-American architect who designed several notable buildings in Chicago, including the Rookery Building and the Manhattan Building.

Overall, the surname "GENSLER" has a rich history rooted in the German-speaking regions of Europe, with possible connections to the medieval goose-rearing industry. While its exact origins remain somewhat uncertain, the name has been carried by individuals from various walks of life, including merchants, farmers, educators, politicians, and architects.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Gensler

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

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 Gensler was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 94.59% 1,119
Non-Hispanic Black Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 1.44% 17
Hispanic Origin 3.21% 38

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 Gensler has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 94.59% 96.83% -2.34%
Black (S)% (S)% (S)%
Asian and Pacific Islander (S)% 0.34% (S)%
American Indian and Alaskan Native (S)% (S)% (S)%
Two or More Races 1.44% 0.76% 61.82%
Hispanic 3.21% 1.45% 75.54%

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

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

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"Gensler last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on November 22, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/gensler-surname-popularity/.

"Gensler last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/gensler-surname-popularity/. Accessed 22 November, 2024

Gensler last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/gensler-surname-popularity/.

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