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

Wessling, 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 Wessling surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Wessling in America

Wessling is the 26391st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Wessling surname appeared 925 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Wessling.

We can also compare 2010 data for Wessling 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 Wessling

The surname Wessling is of German origin, with its earliest known roots dating back to the 13th century. It is believed to have originated from the Lower Saxony region of northwestern Germany, specifically around the town of Wesseling, located near the city of Cologne.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Wessling can be found in the medieval charters and records of the Cologne region, where it was often spelled as "Wesselinck" or "Wesselynck." These variations suggest that the name may have derived from the Old German word "wessil," meaning a small stream or brook, potentially indicating that the name's bearers lived near a waterway.

In the 14th century, the name appears in various municipal records and land registries across Lower Saxony and the Rhineland region. One notable mention is found in the "Stadtbuch" (city book) of Cologne from the year 1370, which lists a "Johann Wesseling" as a resident of the city.

During the 15th and 16th centuries, the surname Wessling began to spread more widely across Germany, with several notable individuals bearing the name. One such person was Martin Wessling (1509-1585), a Reformation-era theologian and professor at the University of Wittenberg, who was a contemporary of Martin Luther.

Another prominent figure was Johann Wessling (1629-1689), a German cartographer and publisher who produced some of the most detailed maps of his time, including the "Novissima et Accuratissima Descriptio Utriusque Holsatiae" (A Very New and Most Accurate Description of Both Holsteins) in 1677.

In the 18th century, the surname Wessling can be found in various military records and church registries across Germany. One notable bearer was Johann Friedrich Wessling (1724-1805), a German poet and writer who authored several works, including the poem "An die Natur" (To Nature).

As German emigration to other parts of Europe and the Americas increased in the 19th century, the surname Wessling began to spread to other regions. One notable individual from this era was Friedrich Wessling (1801-1860), a German-American farmer and landowner who settled in Missouri and became a prominent figure in the local community.

Throughout its history, the surname Wessling has maintained a strong presence in Germany, with many individuals bearing the name contributing to various fields, including academia, literature, cartography, and more. While its origins can be traced back to the medieval period in Lower Saxony, the name has since become widely dispersed and continues to be carried by individuals of German descent around the world.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Wessling

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

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

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

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