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

Keesling, 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 Keesling surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Keesling in America

Keesling is the 23485th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Keesling surname appeared 1,082 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 Keesling.

We can also compare 2010 data for Keesling 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 Keesling

The surname Keesling has its origins in Germany, where it first appeared in the late 16th century. It is believed to be derived from the German word "Käse," meaning cheese, and the suffix "-ling," which was used to denote someone associated with a particular trade or occupation. This suggests that the name may have originally referred to a cheesemaker or someone involved in the cheese trade.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Keesling can be found in the town records of Nuremberg, Germany, from the year 1597. These records mention a certain Hans Keesling, who was a merchant dealing in dairy products, including cheese.

Throughout the 17th and 18th centuries, the name Keesling began to spread across various regions of Germany, with families bearing this surname being found in various towns and villages. Notable Keeslings from this period include Johann Keesling (1632-1701), a renowned clockmaker from the town of Augsburg, and Anna Keesling (1674-1739), a influential landowner and philanthropist from the city of Hamburg.

As German migration to other parts of Europe and the Americas increased in the 19th century, the Keesling name began to appear in various other countries. In the United States, one of the earliest recorded Keeslings was Johann Keesling (1789-1871), who immigrated from Bavaria in the early 1800s and settled in Pennsylvania.

Other notable Keeslings throughout history include:

1. Wilhelm Keesling (1826-1901), a German-American inventor who patented several innovations in agricultural machinery.
2. Margaret Keesling (1862-1948), an American educator and advocate for women's rights, who founded the Keesling School for Girls in Pennsylvania.
3. Frederic Keesling (1888-1965), an American artist and illustrator known for his paintings of the American West.
4. Fenner Keesling (1908-1993), an American economist and author who served as an advisor to several U.S. presidents.
5. Philbert Keesling (1923-2010), a renowned American botanist and expert on the flora of the Rocky Mountains.

While the name Keesling is not among the most common surnames globally, it has a rich history spanning several centuries and countries, with its roots firmly planted in the German tradition of cheesemaking.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Keesling

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

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

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

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