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

Meshesha, 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 Meshesha surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Meshesha in America

Meshesha is the 73215th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Meshesha surname appeared 265 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 Meshesha.

We can also compare 2010 data for Meshesha 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 Meshesha

The surname Meshesha is believed to have originated in Ethiopia, specifically in the northern region of Tigray. It is thought to have derived from the Ge'ez language, which was the ancient Semitic language of Eritrea and Ethiopia. The name itself may have roots in the Ge'ez word "meshe," meaning "to walk" or "to travel."

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Meshesha can be found in the Kibre Negest, an ancient Ethiopian text that dates back to the 14th century. This text is considered a significant literary work in the Ge'ez language and chronicles the history of the Solomonic dynasty in Ethiopia.

In the 16th century, there are records of a notable figure named Meshesha Dengel, who was the Emperor of Ethiopia from 1563 to 1597. He was known for his military campaigns against the Ottoman Empire and his efforts to preserve the Ethiopian Orthodox Church.

Another prominent figure bearing the surname Meshesha was Kefle Meshesha, a 19th-century Ethiopian noble and military leader. He played a crucial role in the Zemene Mesafint, also known as the Era of Princes, which was a period of decentralized rule in Ethiopia.

In the 20th century, Berhane Meshesha (1915-1991) was a renowned Ethiopian artist and painter. He is celebrated for his contributions to the development of modern Ethiopian art and his depictions of traditional Ethiopian life and culture.

More recently, Haddis Meshesha (born in 1981) is an Ethiopian long-distance runner who specializes in marathon events. He has won several prestigious races, including the Rotterdam Marathon in 2012 and the Amsterdam Marathon in 2013.

While the surname Meshesha is most commonly associated with Ethiopia, it is also found in other parts of the world due to migration and diaspora communities. However, its roots can be traced back to the ancient Ge'ez language and the rich cultural history of Ethiopia.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Meshesha

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

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

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