Heise last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Heise

Derived from the German word "heiser," meaning "hoarse," likely referring to a person with a raspy voice.

Heise, 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 Heise surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Heise in America

Heise is the 7753rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Heise surname appeared 4,282 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 Heise.

We can also compare 2010 data for Heise 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 7753 7568 2.41%
Count 4,282 4,052 5.52%
Proportion per 100k 1.45 1.50 -3.39%

The history of the last name Heise

The surname Heise originated from Germany, with its earliest records dating back to the Middle Ages. The name is derived from the German word "Heide," which means "heath" or "wasteland." This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who lived near or in a heathland area.

The name Heise can be traced back to the 13th century, with one of the earliest recorded instances appearing in a German manuscript from 1285, where a person named "Heinrich von der Heise" was mentioned. This indicates that the name was likely used as a locational surname, referring to a specific place or region.

In the 14th century, variations of the name, such as "Heyse" and "Heysen," were also documented in various records, including tax rolls and municipal documents. These variations may have arisen due to regional dialects or scribal errors in transcribing the name.

One notable historical figure bearing the surname Heise was Johann Christian Heise (1692-1759), a German composer and organist who was born in Kleinbremen, Saxony-Anhalt. He is remembered for his contributions to the development of the North German organ school.

Another prominent individual with the surname Heise was Wilhelm Heise (1797-1879), a German writer and translator who was born in Kassel. He is known for his translations of several works by Shakespeare, as well as his own literary works.

In the 19th century, the Heise surname was also found in various place names, such as Heisedamm and Heisemühle, which were small villages or settlements located in different regions of Germany.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Heise in the United States can be traced back to the late 18th century, with Johann Heinrich Heise (1761-1838), a German immigrant who settled in Pennsylvania.

Another notable figure with the surname Heise was Carl Heise (1845-1923), a German-American engineer and inventor who was born in Saxony. He is credited with developing several innovative agricultural machines and implements.

Throughout history, the surname Heise has been associated with individuals from various professions, including musicians, writers, inventors, and scholars, highlighting the diverse backgrounds and contributions of those bearing this name.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Heise

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

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 Heise was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 95.96% 4,109
Non-Hispanic Black Only 0.68% 29
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 0.51% 22
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.14% 6
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 1.03% 44
Hispanic Origin 1.68% 72

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

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 95.96% 96.79% -0.86%
Black 0.68% 0.64% 6.06%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.51% 0.42% 19.35%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.14% 0.25% -56.41%
Two or More Races 1.03% 0.74% 32.77%
Hispanic 1.68% 1.16% 36.62%

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

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

Reference this page

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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!

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

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

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

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