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

Pieper, 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 Pieper surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Pieper in America

Pieper is the 5103rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Pieper surname appeared 6,860 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Pieper.

We can also compare 2010 data for Pieper 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 Pieper

The surname Pieper originated in Germany, with records dating back to the 13th century. It is believed to derive from the Middle Low German word "piper," meaning a piper or player of the pipe. This suggests that the name may have been an occupational surname for someone who played the pipe or pipe instrument.

The earliest known bearer of the name was Henricus Piper, who was mentioned in a record from the town of Lübeck in 1284. Other early spellings of the name include Pyper, Piper, and Pipper. During the Middle Ages, the name was particularly prevalent in the regions of Westphalia, Lower Saxony, and the Rhineland.

In the 14th century, a man named Johannes Piper was recorded as a citizen of the city of Cologne. A century later, in 1448, a certain Claus Pieper was mentioned in a document from the town of Soest in Westphalia.

One of the earliest documented instances of the name Pieper can be found in the Bremisches Urkundenbuch, a collection of historical documents from the city of Bremen, where a Hinricus Piper was mentioned in 1285.

During the 16th century, the name Pieper appeared in several historical records from various parts of Germany. For example, a man named Jasper Pieper was recorded as a citizen of Lübeck in 1536, while a certain Hans Pieper was mentioned in a document from the town of Osnabruck in 1572.

A notable bearer of the name was Johann Pieper (1504-1542), a German theologian and Protestant reformer who was a follower of Martin Luther. He served as a pastor in various cities, including Lübeck and Hamburg.

Another prominent figure was Tobias Pieper (1587-1652), a German jurist and diplomat who served as a councillor to the Prince-Elector of Brandenburg. He played a significant role in negotiating the Peace of Westphalia, which ended the Thirty Years' War.

In the 18th century, Johann Pieper (1714-1788) was a German composer and organist who worked in various churches in Westphalia and Saxony. He was known for his contributions to sacred music.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Pieper

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

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

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

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