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

Wester, 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 Wester surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Wester in America

Wester is the 6532nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Wester surname appeared 5,187 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Wester.

We can also compare 2010 data for Wester 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 Wester

The surname Wester is of Anglo-Saxon origin, derived from the Old English word "west", meaning "westerly" or "from the west". It is believed to have originated in England during the medieval period, possibly as a locational name for someone who lived to the west of a particular town or village.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Wester can be found in the Domesday Book, a manuscript record of landowners in England compiled in 1086 by order of William the Conqueror. In the Domesday Book, there are several entries for individuals with the surname Wester or similar spellings such as Westur or Westere.

During the 13th and 14th centuries, the surname Wester began to appear more frequently in various historical records, including tax rolls, court documents, and parish registers. Some notable individuals with the surname Wester from this period include John Wester, a landowner in Suffolk mentioned in the Hundred Rolls of 1273, and William Wester, a merchant from London recorded in the city's civic records in 1381.

In the 16th century, the surname Wester was associated with several notable figures, such as Thomas Wester (c. 1500-1568), an English clergyman and academic who served as the Dean of Windsor from 1558 until his death. Another prominent individual was Richard Wester (1564-1613), a playwright and poet who was a contemporary of William Shakespeare.

As the surname spread across different regions of England, it evolved into various spelling variations, including Westere, Westure, and Westor. Some of these variations were influenced by the names of specific places or towns, such as Westerham in Kent or Weston in Somerset.

During the 17th and 18th centuries, several notable individuals bore the Wester surname, including John Wester (1629-1692), a prominent merchant and philanthropist from Bristol, and Edward Wester (1725-1799), a British army officer who served in the American Revolutionary War.

Throughout its history, the surname Wester has been carried by individuals from various walks of life, including scholars, artists, soldiers, and merchants. While not as widely prevalent as some other English surnames, it remains a part of the rich tapestry of family names that reflect the diverse cultural and linguistic influences that have shaped the English language over the centuries.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Wester

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

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

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

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