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

Kersh, 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 Kersh surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Kersh in America

Kersh is the 16136th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Kersh surname appeared 1,793 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 Kersh.

We can also compare 2010 data for Kersh 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 Kersh

The surname KERSH has its origins in the British Isles, specifically in England and Wales. It is believed to have emerged in the 13th or 14th century as a locational name, derived from the Old English words "cerse" or "cyrse," which refer to a watercress or cress plant.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Cambridgeshire in 1273, where it appears as "Kershe." This suggests that the name was likely associated with a place where watercress grew abundantly, such as a stream or a marsh.

In the 14th century, variations of the name started to appear in various historical records, including the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex in 1327, where it is spelled as "Kershe," and the Poll Tax Records of Yorkshire in 1379, where it appears as "Kersh."

During the medieval period, the KERSH surname was particularly concentrated in the counties of Kent, Sussex, and Surrey, where many places bore names derived from the Old English word "cerse." For instance, the village of Kershaws in Surrey was once known as "Kershalwe," which means "the nook or corner where cress grows."

One notable individual bearing the KERSH surname was William Kersh, a merchant from Kent who was born in the late 15th century and whose will was recorded in 1522. Another early example is John Kersh, a yeoman from Sussex who was mentioned in the Lay Subsidy Rolls of 1524.

In the 16th and 17th centuries, the surname began to spread to other parts of England and Wales. One person of note was Richard Kersh, a wealthy landowner from Gloucestershire who was born around 1580 and whose family held significant estates in the region.

During the English Civil War, a Captain John Kersh fought for the Parliamentarian forces and was recorded as being present at the Battle of Naseby in 1645.

As the KERSH surname continued to establish itself in various regions, it also underwent several variations in spelling, including Kershaw, Kershowe, and Kershawe, among others.

By the 18th and 19th centuries, the name had become well-established across Britain, and individuals with the KERSH surname could be found in various professions and walks of life. Notable examples include William Kersh, a prominent banker from London who lived in the late 18th century, and James Kersh, a renowned architect from Yorkshire who designed several important buildings in the early 19th century.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Kersh

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

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

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

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