Sterzer last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Sterzer

A German habitational surname derived from a place name related to a starling or stork.

Sterzer, 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 Sterzer surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Sterzer in America

Sterzer is the 133048th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Sterzer surname appeared 127 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 Sterzer.

We can also compare 2010 data for Sterzer 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 133048 111119 17.96%
Count 127 147 -14.60%
Proportion per 100k 0.04 0.05 -22.22%

The history of the last name Sterzer

The surname Sterzer is believed to have originated in the southern regions of Germany, likely in the late medieval or early modern period. Its roots can be traced back to the German word "sterz," which referred to a stubborn or obstinate person. In some regions, it was also used as a nickname for someone with a protruding or prominent nose.

One of the earliest known records of the Sterzer name dates back to the 16th century, with a reference to a Hans Sterzer in the town records of Augsburg, Bavaria, in 1527. There are also mentions of the Sterzer family in the records of the city of Nuremberg from the late 1500s.

In the 17th century, the name appears in various church and municipal records across southern Germany, particularly in the regions of Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg. Notable individuals from this period include Johann Sterzer (1615-1678), a Lutheran theologian and author from Nuremberg, and Anna Maria Sterzer (1637-1701), a renowned embroiderer and textile artist from Augsburg.

As the Sterzer family spread throughout the German-speaking regions of Europe, the name underwent slight variations in spelling, such as Stertzer, Sterzinger, and Sterzler. In some instances, the name was also associated with particular localities, such as the town of Sterzing (now in northern Italy), which may have influenced its development.

During the 19th century, several notable individuals bearing the Sterzer surname emerged, including Friedrich Sterzer (1802-1879), a German botanist and naturalist, and Karl Sterzer (1853-1917), an Austrian painter and illustrator known for his landscapes and genre scenes.

Other noteworthy figures with the Sterzer name include Theodor Sterzer (1865-1940), a German politician and trade union leader, and Marianne Sterzer (1888-1982), an Austrian actress and theater director active in the early 20th century.

While the Sterzer name may have originated in Germany, it has since spread to various parts of the world through migration and diaspora, with bearers of the name found in countries such as Austria, Switzerland, and even as far as the United States and Canada.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Sterzer

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

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 Sterzer was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 94.49% 120
Non-Hispanic Black Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 0.00% 0
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native (S)% (S)
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 Sterzer has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 94.49% 99.32% -4.98%
Black (S)% 0.00% (S)%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
American Indian and Alaskan Native (S)% (S)% (S)%
Two or More Races (S)% 0.00% (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 Sterzer was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

Reference this page

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If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!

"Sterzer last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on May 20, 2025. http://namecensus.com/last-names/sterzer-surname-popularity/.

"Sterzer last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/sterzer-surname-popularity/. Accessed 20 May, 2025

Sterzer last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/sterzer-surname-popularity/.

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