Smoller last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Smoller

A surname derived from the Yiddish word "shmuler," meaning someone small or petite in stature.

Smoller, 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 Smoller surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Smoller in America

Smoller is the 76029th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Smoller surname appeared 253 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 Smoller.

We can also compare 2010 data for Smoller 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.

20102000Change (%)
Rank7602978838-3.63%
Count25322511.72%
Proportion per 100k0.090.0811.76%

The history of the last name Smoller

The surname Smoller has its origins in the German language, tracing back to the 14th century in the region of Bavaria. It is believed to have derived from the Middle High German word "smöl," meaning "small" or "little." This suggests that the name may have been initially used as a descriptive nickname for someone of short stature or a smaller person.

In the early records of the region, the name appeared with various spellings, such as Smöller, Smöler, and Smöller. One of the earliest documented instances of the name can be found in a municipal record from the town of Augsburg, dating back to 1382, which mentions a certain "Hans Smöller."

The Smoller surname is also associated with several notable individuals throughout history. In the 16th century, a prominent scholar and theologian named Johannes Smoller (1516-1584) made significant contributions to the Protestant Reformation movement in Germany. He was a close associate of Martin Luther and played a crucial role in the translation of the Bible into German.

Another notable figure was Wilhelm Smoller (1683-1747), a German painter and engraver from Nuremberg. His works, particularly his etchings and engravings, were highly regarded and can be found in various art collections across Europe.

In the 19th century, Carl Smoller (1821-1899) was a prominent German architect who designed several iconic buildings in Berlin, including the Reichstag and the Berlin Cathedral. His innovative architectural style had a lasting impact on the cityscape of Berlin.

Moving into the 20th century, Ernst Smoller (1900-1976) was a renowned German-American physicist who made significant contributions to the field of nuclear physics. He worked on the Manhattan Project during World War II and later became a professor at Columbia University.

Lastly, the name Smoller can be traced to the town of Smolná, located in the Czech Republic. It is possible that some individuals with this surname originated from this region and migrated to other parts of Europe over time.

While the surname Smoller may not have been widely documented in historical manuscripts or records like the Domesday Book, its origins can be traced back to the medieval period in Germany, where it likely emerged as a descriptive nickname before becoming an established surname.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Smoller

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

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 Smoller was:

Race/EthnicityPercentageTotal Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only97.63%247
Non-Hispanic Black Only0.00%0
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only(S)%(S)
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native0.00%0
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races(S)%(S)
Hispanic Origin(S)%(S)

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 Smoller has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

20102000Change (%)
White97.63%97.33%0.31%
Black0.00%(S)%(S)%
Asian and Pacific Islander(S)%0.00%(S)%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0.00%0.00%0.00%
Two or More Races(S)%(S)%(S)%
Hispanic(S)%(S)%(S)%

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

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

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