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

Weller, 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 Weller surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Weller in America

Weller is the 2615th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Weller surname appeared 13,774 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 5 people would have the surname Weller.

We can also compare 2010 data for Weller 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 Weller

The surname Weller originated in Germany and is derived from the Middle High German word "wellær," which means "weller" or "fuller." This occupation referred to someone who treated and thickened cloth, particularly wool, by beating and pressing it. The surname first appeared in records in the late 12th century, and early examples of the name were found in various German states and principalities.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the Weller surname can be found in the Bürgerbucher (Citizen Books) of the city of Nuremberg, which mention a Chunrat der Weller in 1348. Additionally, the surname appears in the tax rolls of the town of Rottenburg am Neckar in 1441, where a Hanns Weller is listed.

The Weller name was also present in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae, a collection of medieval documents from Saxony, which includes references to individuals with the surname in the 14th and 15th centuries. For instance, a Nicol Weller is mentioned in a document from 1389 concerning a property dispute in the town of Zwickau.

In England, the surname Weller is thought to have been introduced by German immigrants in the 16th and 17th centuries. One of the earliest recorded examples is Thomas Weller, who was born in Wantage, Berkshire, in 1566. Another notable bearer of the name was John Weller (1712-1789), an English portraitist and painter who worked in London.

The Weller surname has been associated with several notable individuals throughout history, including:

1. Friedrich Ludwig Weller (1799-1892), a German pastor and theologian.
2. Jacobus Weller (1601-1668), a Dutch Golden Age painter and engraver.
3. Samuel Weller (1776-1854), an English cricketer who played for Surrey and Hampshire.
4. Thomas Weller (1915-2008), an American virologist known for isolating and growing the polio virus in a laboratory setting.
5. Millicent Weller (1907-1993), an American actress who appeared in several films and television shows in the mid-20th century.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Weller

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

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

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

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