2000
#118,954
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 135
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Keistler
A habitational surname derived from a place name, perhaps referring to someone from Keistler or Keisterloch in Germany.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 131 Americans carry the last name Keistler. That puts it at #146,495 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,616,445 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Keistler surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
131
1 in 2,616,445
Census rank
#146,495
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
114
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 114 bearers of the surname Keistler in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 146495th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Keistler, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Keistler
The surname Keistler originates from the German region and likely dates back to the 16th century. It is thought to be derived from the German word "Keistler" or "Keissler", which referred to a person who made wooden barrels or casks. The name may have also been an occupational name for a cooper or barrel maker.
The earliest recorded instances of the Keistler surname can be found in various German church records and tax rolls from the 1500s and 1600s. Some of the earliest known bearers of the name include Hans Keistler, born around 1560 in Nuremberg, and Jorg Keistler, who was recorded in a census in Heidelberg in 1598.
In the 17th century, the Keistler name appeared in several German villages and towns, particularly in the regions of Bavaria and Saxony. The spelling variations at the time included Keistler, Keissler, Keisler, and Keysler.
One notable person with the Keistler surname was Johann Keistler, a German composer and organist who lived from 1671 to 1738. He was known for his contributions to the development of the Baroque style of music.
Another individual of historical significance was Wilhelm Keistler, a German mathematician and astronomer born in 1784. He made important contributions to the study of celestial mechanics and the calculation of planetary orbits.
In the 19th century, the Keistler name spread beyond Germany as some families emigrated to other parts of Europe and North America. One such example is Johann Keistler, who was born in Bavaria in 1825 and later settled in Pennsylvania, United States, where he worked as a farmer.
Other notable bearers of the Keistler surname include Karl Keistler, a German artist and painter who lived from 1858 to 1934, and Hermann Keistler, a German chemist and inventor born in 1892, who is credited with developing a process for the production of synthetic rubber.
While the Keistler name may have originated as an occupational surname for barrel makers, it has since become a well-established surname found across various parts of the world, with its roots firmly planted in the German-speaking regions of Europe.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Keistler
Among Census respondents with the surname Keistler, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Keistler bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Keistler surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.9% · 107
- Two or more races4.4% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.8% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Keistler
Keistler appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#133,863
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 126
-9 bearers (-6.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 14,909 places
2020
#146,495
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
-12 bearers (-9.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 12,632 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #118,954 | 135 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #133,863 | 126 | 0.04 | -9 bearers (-6.7%) | Down 14,909 places |
| 2020 | #146,495 | 114 | 0.04 | -12 bearers (-9.5%) | Down 12,632 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Keistler surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #133,863 | #146,495 | -9.4% |
| Count | 126 | 114 | -9.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -4.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Keistler bearers went from 126 to 114 (-9.5% change). The surname moved down 12,632 positions in the national ranking, going from #133,863 to #146,495.
FAQ
Keistler surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Keistler?
Name Census estimates that about 131 living Americans carry the surname Keistler. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,616,445 residents.
How common is Keistler?
Keistler ranks #146,495 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 114 people with the surname Keistler. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (131), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Keistler.
Has Keistler become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Keistler went from 126 recorded bearers to 114. That is a decrease of 12 (-9.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #133,863 to #146,495.
What does the Census say about the background of Keistler?
Among Census respondents with the surname Keistler, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.8%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Keistler in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.9% (107 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Keistler appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.9%), Two or More Races (4.4%), Asian/Pacific Islander (1.8%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Keistler (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Keistler mean?
A habitational surname derived from a place name, perhaps referring to someone from Keistler or Keisterloch in Germany. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Keistler (0.04 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people are called Keistler?
Find out how many Americans have the surname Keistler on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.