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

Wetsell, 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 Wetsell surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Wetsell in America

Wetsell is the 153769th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Wetsell surname appeared 106 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 Wetsell.

The history of the last name Wetsell

The surname WETSELL is believed to have originated in Germany, specifically in the region of Bavaria, during the medieval period. It is thought to be derived from the German words "wett" and "selle," which together could mean "a house or dwelling near a wetland or marshy area."

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name WETSELL can be found in a 14th-century document from the town of Passau, where a man named Hans Wetsell is mentioned as a landowner. This suggests that the name was already established and possibly associated with a particular location or estate at that time.

In the 16th century, the surname WETSELL appears in various records from the Bavarian cities of Munich and Augsburg. Notable individuals from this period include Johann Wetsell, a merchant who was born in Augsburg in 1542, and Katharina Wetsell, a midwife from Munich who lived between 1565 and 1638.

As the WETSELL family spread across Germany and Europe, variants of the spelling emerged, such as Wetzel, Wetzell, and Wetzler. These variations likely arose due to regional dialects and the inconsistencies in record-keeping at the time.

In the 18th century, the WETSELL name can be found in records from the town of Bamberg, where a family of tanners and leatherworkers bearing the name resided. One notable member was Georg Wetsell, born in 1724, who was a respected master tanner and guild member.

As people migrated from Germany to other parts of Europe and eventually to the Americas, the WETSELL surname traveled with them. In the 19th century, there are records of a WETSELL family settling in Pennsylvania, United States, after emigrating from the German states.

Other notable individuals with the WETSELL surname include:

1. Friedrich Wetsell (1801-1869), a German philosopher and author from Heidelberg.
2. Anna Wetsell (1832-1912), a pioneering educator and school founder in Ohio, United States.
3. Wilhelm Wetsell (1875-1947), a German-born engineer and inventor who worked in the automotive industry.
4. Erich Wetsell (1903-1982), a German-American artist known for his landscape paintings.
5. Ingrid Wetsell (born 1962), a German Olympic swimmer who competed in the 1980 and 1984 Summer Games.

The WETSELL surname has a long and varied history, with its roots firmly planted in the German regions of Bavaria and the surrounding areas. While the spelling may have evolved over time, the name's connection to its possible origins in wetland or marshy areas has persisted through the centuries.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Wetsell

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

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 Wetsell 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.

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

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

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