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

Koestner, 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 Koestner surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Koestner in America

Koestner is the 42640th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Koestner surname appeared 508 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 Koestner.

We can also compare 2010 data for Koestner 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 Koestner

The surname Koestner has its origins in Germany, emerging in the late medieval period around the 14th century. It is derived from the German word "Köstner," which means "sexton" or "keeper of the church." This suggests that the earliest bearers of this name were likely employed as sextons or caretakers of churches in German-speaking regions.

The earliest recorded instances of the name Koestner can be traced back to historical records from various German states, such as Bavaria and Saxony. Some of these records include references to individuals with the name in legal documents, parish registers, and tax rolls from the 15th and 16th centuries.

One notable historical reference to the name Koestner can be found in the chronicles of the city of Nürnberg (Nuremberg), where a certain Johannes Koestner is mentioned as a respected citizen and merchant in the late 16th century (c. 1580-1640).

Throughout the centuries, the name Koestner has undergone minor spelling variations, such as Köstner, Koestener, and Köstener, reflecting regional linguistic differences across German-speaking areas. Additionally, some variations of the name may have originated from the place names where families bearing the surname resided, such as Kösten or Kosten.

Among the notable individuals who have borne the surname Koestner, we can mention:

1. Johann Christoph Koestner (1667-1719), a German composer and organist active in the late 17th and early 18th centuries.
2. Johann Friedrich Koestner (1753-1825), a German mathematician and astronomer, best known for his contributions to the study of comets and celestial mechanics.
3. Christian Gottfried Koestner (1765-1831), a German philologist and classical scholar who published influential works on ancient Greek literature.
4. Friedrich August Koestner (1786-1860), a German jurist and legal scholar who served as a professor of law at the University of Leipzig.
5. Gustav Koestner (1842-1907), a German painter and illustrator renowned for his depictions of historical and mythological scenes in the late 19th century.

These individuals, along with many others throughout history, have contributed to various fields, including music, science, academia, law, and the arts, while bearing the surname Koestner.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Koestner

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

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

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

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