2000
#12,573
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,259
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.84
Rare Last name
Wesner
Derived from a Germanic personal name composed of the elements "wis," meaning wise, and "ner," meaning army.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,592 Americans carry the last name Wesner. That puts it at #12,996 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.76 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 132,235 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Wesner 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
2.6K
1 in 132,235
Census rank
#12,996
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,260 bearers of the surname Wesner in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.76 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12996th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Wesner, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.0%) and Two or More Races (2.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Wesner
The surname WESNER is of German origin, derived from the Old High German word "wesanen," which means "to dwell" or "to reside." It likely emerged in the 8th or 9th century as a descriptive name for someone who lived in a particular area or settlement.
The earliest recorded instances of the WESNER surname can be traced back to the 13th century in various regions of present-day Germany, such as Bavaria and Saxony. Historical records from that time period often show variations in spelling, including Wesener, Wesner, and Wessner.
One of the earliest known bearers of the WESNER name was Heinrich Wesner, a landowner and farmer who lived in the village of Heidenheim, near Würzburg, in the late 13th century. His name appears in tax records from 1289.
In the 15th century, the WESNER surname is found in the town of Rothenburg ob der Tauber, where a family of goldsmiths and metalsmiths bore the name. Notable among them was Hans Wesner (1435-1501), a renowned goldsmith whose intricate works adorned many churches and noble households in the region.
Another prominent bearer of the WESNER name was Johann Wesner (1567-1628), a Lutheran theologian and educator from Nürnberg. He served as a professor of theology at the University of Altdorf and authored several influential treatises on religious doctrine.
During the 17th century, the WESNER surname spread to other parts of Europe, including Austria and Switzerland. One notable figure from this period was Matthias Wesner (1621-1689), a Swiss military officer who served in the Thirty Years' War and later became a councillor in the city of Zürich.
In the 19th century, Johann Georg Wesner (1798-1872), a German mathematician and astronomer, made significant contributions to the field of celestial mechanics and the calculation of planetary orbits.
While the WESNER surname originated in Germany, it has since been found in various other countries due to migration and diaspora, including the United States, Canada, and Australia.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Wesner
Among Census respondents with the surname Wesner, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.0%) and Two or More Races (2.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Wesner 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 Wesner surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.5% · 2,069
- Hispanic or Latino4.0% · 90
- Two or more races2.0% · 45
- Black or African American1.5% · 34
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 15
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 7
Timeline
Historical Census data for Wesner
Wesner 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
#13,073
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,349
+90 bearers (+4.0%)
Per 100,000 0.80
Rank movement Down 500 places
2020
#12,996
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,260
-89 bearers (-3.8%)
Per 100,000 0.76
Rank movement Up 77 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,573 | 2,259 | 0.84 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,073 | 2,349 | 0.80 | +90 bearers (+4.0%) | Down 500 places |
| 2020 | #12,996 | 2,260 | 0.76 | -89 bearers (-3.8%) | Up 77 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 Wesner 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 | #13,073 | #12,996 | 0.6% |
| Count | 2,349 | 2,260 | -3.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.80 | 0.76 | -5.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Wesner bearers went from 2,349 to 2,260 (-3.8% change). The surname moved up 77 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,073 to #12,996.
FAQ
Wesner surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Wesner?
Name Census estimates that about 2,592 living Americans carry the surname Wesner. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 132,235 residents.
How common is Wesner?
Wesner ranks #12,996 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.76 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 2,260 people with the surname Wesner. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,592), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.76 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.76 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 Wesner.
Has Wesner become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Wesner went from 2,349 recorded bearers to 2,260. That is a decrease of 89 (-3.8%). In the national ranking it rose from #13,073 to #12,996.
What does the Census say about the background of Wesner?
Among Census respondents with the surname Wesner, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.0%) and Two or More Races (2.0%). 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 Wesner in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.5% (2,069 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Wesner appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.5%), Hispanic (4.0%), Two or More Races (2.0%). 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 Wesner (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 Wesner mean?
Derived from a Germanic personal name composed of the elements "wis," meaning wise, and "ner," meaning army. 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 Wesner (0.76 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 Wesner?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.