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

Kuester, 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 Kuester surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Kuester in America

Kuester is the 15494th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Kuester surname appeared 1,890 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 Kuester.

We can also compare 2010 data for Kuester 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 Kuester

The surname Kuester has its roots in Germany, originating in the Middle Ages. It is derived from the German word "küster," which means "sacristan" or "sexton." A sacristan was a person responsible for maintaining and caring for church property, ringing the bells, and assisting the clergy during services.

The earliest recorded instances of the name Kuester can be found in German church records and tax rolls dating back to the 14th century. At that time, the name was often spelled variations like "Kuster" or "Custer." These early records suggest that the name was initially an occupational surname, given to individuals who held the role of sacristan in their local parish.

One of the earliest known references to the name Kuester appears in a 1389 document from the city of Nuremberg, which mentions a "Johann Kuster." Another early record from 1412 in the town of Bamberg lists a "Konrad Custer" among the local residents.

Over the centuries, the name Kuester has been associated with several notable individuals. In the 16th century, Johann Küster (1556-1628) was a German theologian and Lutheran clergyman who served as a professor at the University of Leipzig. Another notable figure was Johann Küster (1670-1719), a German classical scholar and editor who published influential editions of ancient Greek texts.

In the 18th century, Johann Matthias Küster (1723-1793) was a German physician and naturalist who made significant contributions to the study of botany and zoology. His work included the description of several new plant and animal species.

Moving into the 19th century, Johann Georg Küster (1793-1857) was a German philologist and educator who taught at the University of Göttingen. He published numerous works on ancient Greek literature and language.

While the surname Kuester originated in Germany, it has since spread to other parts of the world due to migration and diaspora. However, the name's roots can be traced back to its historical role as an occupational surname related to the duties of a sacristan in medieval German churches.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Kuester

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

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

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

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