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

Sperling, 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 Sperling surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Sperling in America

Sperling is the 7841st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Sperling surname appeared 4,224 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 Sperling.

We can also compare 2010 data for Sperling 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 Sperling

The surname SPERLING is of German origin, derived from the Middle Low German word "sperlink" which means "little sparrow." It is believed to have originated as a descriptive nickname referring to someone with a small, bird-like appearance or mannerisms.

The earliest recorded instances of the name can be traced back to the 14th century in various regions of Germany, including Saxony and Brandenburg. One of the earliest documented examples is found in the records of the city of Leipzig in 1376, referring to a person named Hans Sperling.

In the 15th century, the name appears in various historical documents and records, such as the Nuremberg Chronicles, a famous illustrated world history published in 1493. The name is also mentioned in the Stadtbuch (city book) of Görlitz, a city in eastern Germany, in the year 1487.

As the name spread across Germany and into neighboring regions, variations in spelling emerged, such as Sperlinck, Sperlingh, and Sperlingk. These variations are often found in historical records from different regions and time periods.

One notable individual with the surname SPERLING was Johann Sperling (1603-1658), a German jurist and legal scholar who served as the Rector of the University of Wittenberg. Another was Otto Sperling (1634-1717), a German philologist and historian who made significant contributions to the study of ancient Greek and Roman literature.

In the 18th century, the name gained prominence with individuals like Johann Sperling (1705-1766), a German theologian and author, and Johann Christian Sperling (1753-1811), a German pharmacist and botanist who made important contributions to the study of medicinal plants.

The SPERLING surname also appears in historical records from other European countries, such as the Netherlands and Poland, likely due to migration and intermarriage. For example, Joachim Sperling (1573-1620) was a Dutch theologian and professor at the University of Leiden, while Jan Sperling (1640-1712) was a notable Polish architect and sculptor.

Throughout history, the surname SPERLING has been associated with various professions and fields, including law, academia, theology, and the arts, reflecting the diverse backgrounds and contributions of those who bore this name.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Sperling

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

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

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

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