2000
#13,536
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,059
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.76
Rare Last name
Wyss
A Swiss habitational surname derived from a place name meaning "white" or "meadow" in Middle High German.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,342 Americans carry the last name Wyss. That puts it at #14,118 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.68 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 146,351 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Wyss 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
2.3K
1 in 146,351
Census rank
#14,118
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,042 bearers of the surname Wyss in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.68 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14118th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Wyss, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.5%) and Two or More Races (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Wyss
The surname WYSS originated in Switzerland and is believed to have first appeared in the German-speaking regions of the country in the early medieval period. It is derived from the Old High German word "wiz," meaning "white" or "bright," and was initially used as a nickname or descriptive name for someone with light hair or a fair complexion.
In the 13th century, the name WYSS can be found in historical records from the cantons of Zurich and Bern. One of the earliest recorded instances is in a document from 1263, which mentions a "Johannes dictus Wiz" (Johannes called Wiz) in the city of Zurich.
The name WYSS also appears in the Habsburger Urbar, a medieval land registry compiled in the late 13th century for the Habsburg dynasty. This document lists several individuals with the surname WYSS living in the region around Zurich and Baden.
During the 14th and 15th centuries, the WYSS name became widespread throughout German-speaking Switzerland, particularly in the cantons of Zurich, Bern, Aargau, and Lucerne. Variations in spelling, such as Wiss, Wyss, and Wys, were common during this period.
One notable figure from this time was Rudolf Wyss (c. 1360-1428), a prominent Swiss military leader and politician from Zurich. He served as the mayor of Zurich and led the city's forces in several battles against the Habsburgs.
In the 16th century, the WYSS surname can be found in the records of the Protestant Reformation. Hans Wyss (c. 1500-1570) was a Swiss theologian and reformer from Zurich who worked closely with Huldrych Zwingli and helped establish the Reformed church in Switzerland.
Another significant figure was Johann Rudolf Wyss (1782-1830), the Swiss author best known for his adventurous novel "The Swiss Family Robinson." This book, published in 1812, told the story of a Swiss family shipwrecked on a deserted tropical island and became a beloved classic of children's literature.
In the 19th century, the WYSS name spread beyond Switzerland as Swiss immigrants settled in other parts of Europe and North America. One example is the celebrated Swiss-American sculptor Adolfo Müller-Ury (1862-1947), whose mother's maiden name was Wyss.
Throughout its history, the surname WYSS has been associated with various places in Switzerland, including the towns of Wyss, Wyssachen, and Wyssenburg, which likely derive their names from the same Old High German root.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Wyss
Among Census respondents with the surname Wyss, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.5%) and Two or More Races (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Wyss 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 Wyss surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.4% · 1,867
- Hispanic or Latino4.5% · 92
- Two or more races2.6% · 53
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 17
- Black or African American0.5% · 10
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Wyss
Wyss 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
#14,257
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,102
+43 bearers (+2.1%)
Per 100,000 0.71
Rank movement Down 721 places
2020
#14,118
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,042
-60 bearers (-2.9%)
Per 100,000 0.68
Rank movement Up 139 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,536 | 2,059 | 0.76 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #14,257 | 2,102 | 0.71 | +43 bearers (+2.1%) | Down 721 places |
| 2020 | #14,118 | 2,042 | 0.68 | -60 bearers (-2.9%) | Up 139 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 Wyss 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 | #14,257 | #14,118 | 1.0% |
| Count | 2,102 | 2,042 | -2.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.71 | 0.68 | -3.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Wyss bearers went from 2,102 to 2,042 (-2.9% change). The surname moved up 139 positions in the national ranking, going from #14,257 to #14,118.
FAQ
Wyss surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Wyss?
Name Census estimates that about 2,342 living Americans carry the surname Wyss. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 146,351 residents.
How common is Wyss?
Wyss ranks #14,118 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.68 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 2,042 people with the surname Wyss. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,342), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.68 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.68 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 Wyss.
Has Wyss become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Wyss went from 2,102 recorded bearers to 2,042. That is a decrease of 60 (-2.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #14,257 to #14,118.
What does the Census say about the background of Wyss?
Among Census respondents with the surname Wyss, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.5%) and Two or More Races (2.6%). 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 Wyss in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.4% (1,867 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Wyss appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.4%), Hispanic (4.5%), Two or More Races (2.6%). 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 Wyss (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 Wyss mean?
A Swiss habitational surname derived from a place name meaning "white" or "meadow" in Middle High German. 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 Wyss (0.68 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 Wyss?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.