Stermer last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Stermer

A surname likely of German origin relating to a strict or stern person.

Stermer, 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 Stermer surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Stermer in America

Stermer is the 28176th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Stermer surname appeared 849 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 Stermer.

We can also compare 2010 data for Stermer 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 (%)
Rank281762472413.05%
Count849946-10.81%
Proportion per 100k0.290.35-18.75%

The history of the last name Stermer

The surname Stermer is of German origin, and it is believed to have emerged during the Middle Ages, sometime around the 13th or 14th century. The name is thought to be derived from the German word "sterm," which means "storm" or "tempest." It's possible that the name was initially used as a descriptive nickname for someone with a forceful or tempestuous personality.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Stermer can be found in the records of the city of Nuremberg, where a certain Hans Stermer was mentioned in a document dated 1422. This suggests that the name was already in use and well-established in southern Germany by the early 15th century.

In the 16th century, a notable individual bearing the name Stermer was Johann Stermer, a Lutheran theologian and reformer who lived from 1508 to 1567. He was a prominent figure in the Protestant Reformation and served as a pastor in several German cities, including Nuremberg and Augsburg.

Another historical figure with the surname Stermer was Wilhelm Stermer, a German astronomer and mathematician who lived from 1633 to 1703. He made significant contributions to the study of comets and is credited with calculating the orbit of the Great Comet of 1680, also known as Kirch's Comet.

During the 18th century, the name Stermer appeared in various records and documents from the German regions of Bavaria and Saxony. One example is Johann Georg Stermer, a renowned clockmaker and inventor who lived from 1709 to 1778 and was based in the town of Nuremberg.

In the 19th century, a notable bearer of the surname Stermer was Carl Stermer, a German artist and painter who specialized in landscapes and architectural scenes. He was born in 1830 and died in 1902, and some of his works can be found in various museums and galleries across Germany.

While the name Stermer is predominantly German in origin, it has also been found in other European countries, such as Austria, Switzerland, and even parts of eastern France and northern Italy, likely due to migration and cultural exchange over the centuries.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Stermer

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

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 Stermer was:

Race/EthnicityPercentageTotal Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only95.41%810
Non-Hispanic Black Only(S)%(S)
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only(S)%(S)
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native1.53%13
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races1.18%10
Hispanic Origin1.30%11

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

20102000Change (%)
White95.41%96.51%-1.15%
Black(S)%(S)%(S)%
Asian and Pacific Islander(S)%(S)%(S)%
American Indian and Alaskan Native1.53%0.85%57.14%
Two or More Races1.18%0.74%45.83%
Hispanic1.30%1.59%-20.07%

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

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

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