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

Keiser, 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 Keiser surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Keiser in America

Keiser is the 4809th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Keiser surname appeared 7,348 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Keiser.

We can also compare 2010 data for Keiser 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 Keiser

The surname Keiser is of German origin and can be traced back to the Middle Ages. It is derived from the German word "Kaiser," which means "emperor" or "ruler." The name likely originated as an occupational surname for someone who worked in the service of an emperor or a ruler.

In the early days, the name was often spelled as "Kayser" or "Keiser." It first appeared in historical records in the 13th century, particularly in regions such as Bavaria, Saxony, and the Rhineland.

One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name Keiser can be found in the Nuremberg Chronicle, a famous illustrated world history published in 1493. It lists several individuals with the surname Keiser who held prominent positions in various German cities and regions.

Among the notable historical figures with the surname Keiser are:

1. Reinhard Keiser (1674-1739), a German Baroque composer and one of the most significant composers of operas in the late 17th and early 18th centuries.

2. Johann Caspar Keiser (1670-1728), a German painter and engraver known for his landscapes and cityscapes.

3. Georg Keiser (1651-1711), a German organist and composer who served as the court organist for the Dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg.

4. Friedrich Keiser (1835-1910), a German architect and urban planner who played a significant role in the development of modern Berlin.

5. Karl Keiser (1869-1945), a German mathematician and educator who made contributions to the field of algebra and number theory.

The name Keiser was also associated with certain place names in Germany, such as Kaiserslautern, which translates to "Emperor's Meadow," and Kaisersesch, meaning "Emperor's Ash Tree."

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Keiser

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

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

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Keiser, 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!