2000
#124,872
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 127
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Wesselhoff
A locational surname derived from a place name meaning a homestead or settlement in a marshy area.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 125 Americans carry the last name Wesselhoff. 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 Wesselhoff 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 Wesselhoff 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 Wesselhoff, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.3%) and Black (3.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Wesselhoff
The surname Wesselhoff originated in Germany during the Middle Ages. It is a locational name derived from the Low German words "wessel" meaning "cottage" and "hoff" meaning "homestead" or "farm". The name likely referred to someone who lived in a small cottage or homestead.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Wesselhoff can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae, a collection of historical documents from the region of Saxony, dating back to the 13th century. This suggests that the name was already in use by that time in areas of northern Germany.
In the 15th century, the name appeared in various records from the city of Hamburg, such as tax rolls and guild records. This indicates that families with the Wesselhoff surname were present in this important Hanseatic city during the late medieval period.
The earliest recorded individual with the surname Wesselhoff was Hans Wesselhoff, born in 1524 in the town of Lüneburg, located in Lower Saxony. He was a merchant and landowner who played a role in the local government of the town.
Another notable figure was Johann Wesselhoff (1590-1666), a Lutheran theologian and professor at the University of Helmstedt. He wrote several influential works on theology and was involved in the debates surrounding the Protestant Reformation.
In the 18th century, a family with the Wesselhoff surname was prominent in the city of Bremen. Friedrich Wesselhoff (1738-1805) was a successful merchant and shipowner who served as a senator in the city's government.
During the 19th century, the name Wesselhoff spread beyond Germany to other parts of Europe and even to the United States. One individual of note was Carl Wesselhoff (1813-1889), a German-American artist and lithographer who settled in St. Louis, Missouri, and documented the American frontier through his artwork.
Another person of historical significance was the German writer and philosopher Rudolf Wesselhoff (1854-1924), who was influenced by the works of Friedrich Nietzsche and wrote extensively on the concept of the "Übermensch" or "Superman".
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Wesselhoff
Among Census respondents with the surname Wesselhoff, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.3%) and Black (3.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Wesselhoff 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 Wesselhoff surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.2% · 95
- Hispanic or Latino7.3% · 8
- Black or African American3.7% · 4
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.8% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Wesselhoff
Wesselhoff 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
#136,449
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 123
-4 bearers (-3.1%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 11,577 places
2020
#150,205
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 109
-14 bearers (-11.4%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 13,756 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #124,872 | 127 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #136,449 | 123 | 0.04 | -4 bearers (-3.1%) | Down 11,577 places |
| 2020 | #150,205 | 109 | 0.04 | -14 bearers (-11.4%) | Down 13,756 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 Wesselhoff 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 | #136,449 | #150,205 | -10.1% |
| Count | 123 | 109 | -11.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -8.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Wesselhoff bearers went from 123 to 109 (-11.4% change). The surname moved down 13,756 positions in the national ranking, going from #136,449 to #150,205.
FAQ
Wesselhoff surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Wesselhoff?
Name Census estimates that about 125 living Americans carry the surname Wesselhoff. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,742,035 residents.
How common is Wesselhoff?
Wesselhoff 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 Wesselhoff. 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 Wesselhoff.
Has Wesselhoff become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Wesselhoff went from 123 recorded bearers to 109. That is a decrease of 14 (-11.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #136,449 to #150,205.
What does the Census say about the background of Wesselhoff?
Among Census respondents with the surname Wesselhoff, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.3%) and Black (3.7%). 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 Wesselhoff in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.2% (95 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Wesselhoff appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.2%), Hispanic (7.3%), Black (3.7%). 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 Wesselhoff (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 Wesselhoff mean?
A locational surname derived from a place name meaning a homestead or settlement in a marshy area. 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 Wesselhoff (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 people have the surname Wesselhoff?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.