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

Meschede, 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 Meschede surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Meschede in America

Meschede is the 157234th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Meschede surname appeared 103 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 Meschede.

We can also compare 2010 data for Meschede 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 Meschede

The surname Meschede has its origins in Germany, dating back to the medieval period. It is derived from the town of Meschede, located in the district of Hochsauerlandkreis, North Rhine-Westphalia. The name itself is believed to have evolved from the Old Germanic words "mesha" meaning "marshy" and "ede" meaning "clearing" or "open space."

Meschede was first mentioned in historical records in the year 1072, when it was referred to as "Maskedun." This suggests that the name has roots stretching back to the 11th century or even earlier. The town's name likely referred to a marshy clearing where the settlement was established.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Meschede can be found in the Westphalian Landfrieden (Land Peace) of 1491, where a certain Hinrich Meschede is mentioned. This document, which aimed to establish peace and order in the region, provides evidence of the surname's existence during the late medieval period.

In the 16th century, a notable bearer of the name was Johann Meschede, a German theologian and reformer who lived from around 1525 to 1591. He played a significant role in the Protestant Reformation movement in Westphalia and authored several religious works.

During the 17th century, the surname Meschede can be found in various records from the region. One notable figure was Johann Arnold Meschede, a merchant and city councilor in Meschede, who lived from 1628 to 1694.

In the 19th century, Heinrich Meschede (1824-1899) was a prominent German industrialist and entrepreneur. He founded the Meschede Iron and Steel Works, which became a major employer in the region.

Another notable bearer of the surname was Friedrich Meschede (1846-1912), a German politician and lawyer who served as a member of the Prussian House of Representatives and the German Reichstag.

As the surname Meschede is closely tied to the town of the same name, it is likely that many early bearers of the name were residents or originated from this area. However, over time, the surname spread to other regions as people migrated or established new branches of their families.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Meschede

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

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

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