2000
#15,995
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,667
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.62
Rare Last name
Weist
German and Jewish (Ashkenazic) occupational surname for a dyer, from Middle High German wiz, German weiss, meaning "white."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,931 Americans carry the last name Weist. That puts it at #16,549 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.56 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 177,501 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Weist 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
1.9K
1 in 177,501
Census rank
#16,549
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,684 bearers of the surname Weist in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.56 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 16549th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Weist, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (2.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Weist
The surname WEIST originated in Germany during the 13th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old German word "wist," meaning "sustenance" or "nourishment." The name was likely given to those who worked in the food industry or provided provisions.
The earliest recorded instances of the WEIST surname can be found in medieval German records and chronicles from the 1200s. One notable mention is in the Rothenburg ob der Tauber town archives, where a Johann Weist is listed as a baker in 1278.
In the 15th century, the name appeared in various spellings, such as Weyst, Weyste, and Weysten, in various regions of Germany, including Bavaria, Saxony, and the Rhineland. These variations likely stemmed from local dialects and scribal errors in transcribing the name.
The WEIST surname has been associated with several notable individuals throughout history. Hans Weist (1492-1549) was a German painter and engraver known for his religious works and portraits. Johann Weist (1608-1674) was a German composer and organist who served at the court of the Elector Palatine in Heidelberg.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, many WEIST families emigrated from Germany to other parts of Europe and the Americas. Johann Georg Weist (1717-1779) was a German-born American farmer and miller who settled in Pennsylvania in the 1730s and became a prominent landowner in the region.
In the 19th century, Friedrich Weist (1819-1892) was a German educator and author who wrote extensively on pedagogical methods and founded several schools in his native Baden-Württemberg.
Another notable figure was Wilhelm Weist (1867-1945), a German architect who designed numerous buildings in Berlin and other German cities in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, including the Berlin Cathedral and the Reichstag building.
While the WEIST surname has its roots in Germany, it has since spread to various parts of the world due to migration and immigration. However, its origins can be traced back to the medieval era, where it was likely given to those involved in the food and sustenance trades.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Weist
Among Census respondents with the surname Weist, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (2.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Weist 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 Weist surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.9% · 1,581
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 47
- Two or more races2.1% · 35
- Black or African American0.5% · 9
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 7
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.3% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Weist
Weist 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
#15,223
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,934
+267 bearers (+16.0%)
Per 100,000 0.66
Rank movement Up 772 places
2020
#16,549
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,684
-250 bearers (-12.9%)
Per 100,000 0.56
Rank movement Down 1,326 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #15,995 | 1,667 | 0.62 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #15,223 | 1,934 | 0.66 | +267 bearers (+16.0%) | Up 772 places |
| 2020 | #16,549 | 1,684 | 0.56 | -250 bearers (-12.9%) | Down 1,326 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 Weist 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 | #15,223 | #16,549 | -8.7% |
| Count | 1,934 | 1,684 | -12.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.66 | 0.56 | -14.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Weist bearers went from 1,934 to 1,684 (-12.9% change). The surname moved down 1,326 positions in the national ranking, going from #15,223 to #16,549.
FAQ
Weist surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Weist?
Name Census estimates that about 1,931 living Americans carry the surname Weist. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 177,501 residents.
How common is Weist?
Weist ranks #16,549 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.56 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 1,684 people with the surname Weist. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,931), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.56 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.56 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Weist.
Has Weist become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Weist went from 1,934 recorded bearers to 1,684. That is a decrease of 250 (-12.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #15,223 to #16,549.
What does the Census say about the background of Weist?
Among Census respondents with the surname Weist, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (2.1%). 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 Weist in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.9% (1,581 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Weist appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.9%), Hispanic (2.8%), Two or More Races (2.1%). 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 Weist (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 Weist mean?
German and Jewish (Ashkenazic) occupational surname for a dyer, from Middle High German wiz, German weiss, meaning "white." 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 Weist (0.56 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 people have the surname Weist?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.