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

Letteer, 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 Letteer surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Letteer in America

Letteer is the 77264th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Letteer surname appeared 248 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 Letteer.

We can also compare 2010 data for Letteer 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 Letteer

The surname LETTEER is believed to have originated in Germany during the late medieval period, around the 13th or 14th century. It is thought to be derived from an old Germanic word meaning "wanderer" or "traveler," potentially referring to an ancestor who was a merchant or trader traveling between towns and villages.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in a 15th-century document from the town of Heidelberg, which mentions a "Hans Letteer" among the list of local merchants. This suggests that the name had already become established in the region by that time.

In the 16th century, the LETTEER surname appears to have spread to other parts of Germany, as well as neighboring countries like the Netherlands and Switzerland. Some variations in spelling, such as "Leteyr" and "Lettair," can be found in old records from this period.

During the 17th century, a notable bearer of the name was Johann Letteer (1612-1678), a German scholar and philosopher who wrote several treatises on logic and metaphysics. His works were widely studied in universities across Europe during his lifetime.

In the 18th century, the LETTEER name gained prominence in the Netherlands, with the birth of Pieter Letteer (1738-1801), a respected Dutch painter known for his detailed landscapes and seascapes. Some of his works can still be found in museums in Amsterdam and Rotterdam.

Another notable figure was Karl Letteer (1812-1887), a German engineer who played a significant role in the construction of the first railroads in central Europe. His innovative designs and techniques were widely adopted and helped to revolutionize transportation in the 19th century.

As the 19th century progressed, the LETTEER surname began to spread further across Europe and even to other parts of the world, as families emigrated in search of new opportunities. One example is Hans Letteer (1865-1932), a German-born entrepreneur who settled in South Africa and established a successful mining company.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Letteer

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

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

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