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

Meininger, 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 Meininger surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Meininger in America

Meininger is the 30665th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Meininger surname appeared 760 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 Meininger.

We can also compare 2010 data for Meininger 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 Meininger

The surname Meininger originated in Germany, likely in the late medieval period around the 13th or 14th century. It is derived from the German word "Meining," which referred to a person from the town or village of Meiningen, located in the state of Thuringia.

One of the earliest known records of the name Meininger can be found in the tax rolls of the town of Meiningen from the year 1389, where a man named Hans Meininger is listed as a resident. This suggests that the surname had already become established in the area by that time.

The name Meininger may also be related to the German word "Meinen," which means "to have an opinion" or "to think." This could indicate that the name was originally an occupational surname, given to someone who worked as a judge, lawyer, or someone who expressed opinions or made decisions.

In the 16th century, during the Protestant Reformation, a notable figure named Georg Meininger (1515-1598) was a Protestant theologian and reformer who worked alongside Martin Luther. He played a significant role in spreading the teachings of the Reformation in Thuringia and neighboring regions.

Another historical figure with the surname Meininger was Johann Meininger (1673-1745), a German composer and organist who served at the court of the Duke of Saxe-Meiningen. His compositions, particularly his organ works, were highly regarded during his time.

In the 19th century, a famous bearer of the name was Ernst Meininger (1838-1913), a German actor and theater director. He founded the Meiningen Ensemble, a renowned traveling theater company that influenced the development of modern stage production techniques.

During the same period, Georg Meininger (1841-1925) was a German architect who designed several notable buildings in Leipzig, including the Neue Rathaus (New City Hall) and the Neues Theater (New Theater).

Another notable Meininger was Otto Meininger (1846-1927), a German jurist and politician who served as the Minister of Justice for the Kingdom of Saxony from 1902 to 1908.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Meininger

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

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

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

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