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

Nees, 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 Nees surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Nees in America

Nees is the 18640th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Nees surname appeared 1,476 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 Nees.

We can also compare 2010 data for Nees 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 Nees

The surname "NEES" is believed to have originated in Germany during the medieval period, around the 12th or 13th century. It is derived from the Old Germanic word "nēo," which means "new," suggesting that the name may have referred to someone who had recently settled in a particular area or someone who was a newcomer.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name "NEES" can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae Regiae, a collection of medieval documents from Saxony, dating back to the 13th century. In these records, the name appears with various spellings, such as "Nees," "Neese," and "Neesse."

During the 16th century, the name "NEES" gained prominence in the region of Saxony, particularly in the city of Leipzig. Notable individuals with this surname include Johann Nees (1555-1624), a Lutheran pastor and theologian who served as the rector of the University of Leipzig.

In the 17th century, the "NEES" surname spread to other parts of Germany, as well as neighboring countries like the Netherlands and Switzerland. One notable figure from this period is Johann Christian Nees von Esenbeck (1776-1858), a German botanist and naturalist who made significant contributions to the study of plant taxonomy and morphology.

As the name travelled across Europe, it underwent various spelling variations, such as "Neese," "Nease," and "Neiss." In the 18th century, the name appeared in records from the German Palatinate region, where it was associated with several prominent families.

Another notable individual with the "NEES" surname is Christian Gottfried Nees von Esenbeck (1776-1858), a German botanist and philosopher who was the brother of Johann Christian Nees von Esenbeck. He made significant contributions to the field of botany and was a proponent of the Naturphilosophie movement.

In the 19th century, the "NEES" surname continued to spread, with families bearing this name settling in various parts of Europe and even in the Americas. One prominent figure from this period is Walter Nees (1886-1978), a German-American architect known for his work on the campus of the University of Chicago.

While the "NEES" surname has its roots in Germany, it has since become a global name, with bearers of this name found in many countries around the world. Throughout its history, the name has maintained a connection to its Germanic origins and has been associated with notable individuals in fields such as theology, botany, and architecture.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Nees

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

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

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

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