2000
#118,236
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 136
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Waers
A locational surname derived from the place name "Waers" in Belgium.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 125 Americans carry the last name Waers. That puts it at #150,205 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,742,035 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Waers surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
125
1 in 2,742,035
Census rank
#150,205
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
109
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 109 bearers of the surname Waers in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 150205th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Waers, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.8%) and Black (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Waers
The surname "WAERS" is believed to have originated in the Netherlands, derived from the Dutch word "waeren," meaning "goods" or "wares." This suggests that the name may have been initially associated with merchants or traders in the region.
The earliest recorded instances of the name can be traced back to the 16th century in Dutch historical records and documents. One notable mention is found in the Rotterdam municipal records from 1572, where a certain Jan Waers is listed as a cloth merchant.
In the late 16th and early 17th centuries, the name appears to have spread to other parts of Europe, particularly to neighboring regions like Germany and Belgium. This was likely due to the widespread trade and migration patterns of the time.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Pieter Waers, a Dutch navigator and explorer who participated in several expeditions to the East Indies in the early 17th century, working for the Dutch East India Company.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the name Waers was also found in various regions of the Netherlands, such as Friesland and Zeeland. Spelling variations like "Wares" and "Waeres" were common during this period.
In the city of Utrecht, a prominent family by the name of Waers is recorded in the late 18th century. One notable member was Adriaan Waers (1735-1802), a successful merchant and landowner who served as a city councilor.
Another significant figure bearing the surname was Jan Waers (1810-1882), a Dutch painter and art teacher known for his landscape paintings and depictions of rural life in the Netherlands.
As the name spread across Europe, it also gained a foothold in other countries. For instance, in the 19th century, there are records of individuals named Waers in England and Germany, likely descendants of Dutch immigrants or traders who had settled in those regions.
Throughout its history, the surname "WAERS" has maintained its connection to its Dutch origins, reflecting the commercial and maritime heritage of the Netherlands during the golden age of exploration and trade.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Waers
Among Census respondents with the surname Waers, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.8%) and Black (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Waers bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Waers surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White96.3% · 105
- Two or more races2.8% · 3
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Waers
Waers appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#131,379
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 129
-7 bearers (-5.1%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 13,143 places
2020
#150,205
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 109
-20 bearers (-15.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 18,826 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #118,236 | 136 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #131,379 | 129 | 0.04 | -7 bearers (-5.1%) | Down 13,143 places |
| 2020 | #150,205 | 109 | 0.04 | -20 bearers (-15.5%) | Down 18,826 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Waers surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #131,379 | #150,205 | -14.3% |
| Count | 129 | 109 | -15.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -8.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Waers bearers went from 129 to 109 (-15.5% change). The surname moved down 18,826 positions in the national ranking, going from #131,379 to #150,205.
FAQ
Waers surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Waers?
Name Census estimates that about 125 living Americans carry the surname Waers. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,742,035 residents.
How common is Waers?
Waers ranks #150,205 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 109 people with the surname Waers. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (125), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Waers.
Has Waers become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Waers went from 129 recorded bearers to 109. That is a decrease of 20 (-15.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #131,379 to #150,205.
What does the Census say about the background of Waers?
Among Census respondents with the surname Waers, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.8%) and Black (0.9%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Waers in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.3% (105 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Waers appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (96.3%), Two or More Races (2.8%), Black (0.9%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Waers (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Waers mean?
A locational surname derived from the place name "Waers" in Belgium. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Waers (0.04 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many Americans have the surname Waers?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.