Yeiser last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Yeiser

A German surname likely derived from a place name or occupation.

Yeiser, 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 Yeiser surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Yeiser in America

Yeiser is the 71265th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Yeiser surname appeared 274 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 Yeiser.

We can also compare 2010 data for Yeiser 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 71265 57252 21.81%
Count 274 333 -19.44%
Proportion per 100k 0.09 0.12 -28.57%

The history of the last name Yeiser

The surname Yeiser appears to have roots in the Germanic regions of Europe, particularly in what is now modern-day Germany and Austria. It can likely be traced back to the medieval period, roughly around the 12th to 14th centuries. During these times, surnames began to take on significance as Europe moved towards more structured forms of societal organization.

The name Yeiser might derive from the German word "Geyser," which means to go or to rush forth. In that sense, the name may have originally been given to a person living near a prominent geographical feature such as a rushing stream or a geyser, although this is a less likely connection given the rarity of such natural phenomena in Europe compared to Iceland or Yellowstone. It is also possible that Yeiser is a variation of "Geiser," which itself has roots in an occupational or descriptive context.

In historical records, the surname appears in various forms. For example, the "Geissar" or "Geiser" spellings can be seen in medieval tax records and property transactions in regions of Southern Germany, particularly in Bavaria. One early documented mention is found in the Franconian regions, dating back to around 1320 in the form of Hans Geiser, a miller by trade. Such records often indicate the blending and evolution of surnames as they were written phonetically or translated between languages.

One of the significant early bearers of the name in the Germanic territories was Ulrich Yeiser, an influential merchant born in 1453 and died in 1511. He is noted for his contributions to the Hanseatic League, the commercial and defensive confederation of merchant guilds and market towns in Northwestern and Central Europe.

Another prominent individual was Johann Yeiser, a Lutheran cleric and theologian born in 1595 in Nuremberg, who wrote several treatises during the early enlightenment period, passing away in 1662. His works included translations of various classical texts into German, aiding in the dissemination of Renaissance humanism in the region.

In the 18th century, the surname made its way to the Americas due to emigration. One notable immigrant was Wilhelm Yeiser, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1754. Wilhelm was involved in early colonial enterprise and played a role in the local militia during the American Revolutionary War, making his mark in the New World until his death in 1801.

Hilda Yeiser, a renowned operatic singer born in Vienna in 1869, brought the name to fame within artistic circles in Europe. Her career spanned numerous performances across the major opera houses in Europe, and she passed away in 1943.

Paul Yeiser, an Austrian-born inventor (1823–1897), made significant advancements in early electrical engineering, particularly in telegraphic equipment. His patents and innovations contributed to the development of the telecommunication infrastructure in his era.

Overall, the surname Yeiser has a rich historical background intertwined with Germanic linguistic roots and has been carried by various notable individuals who helped shape their respective fields. Its evolution underscores the dynamic and often nuanced ways that surnames develop and proliferate across both Europe and the Americas.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Yeiser

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

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 Yeiser was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 87.23% 239
Non-Hispanic Black Only 9.49% 26
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.00% 0
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races (S)% (S)
Hispanic Origin (S)% (S)

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 Yeiser has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 87.23% 90.09% -3.23%
Black 9.49% 7.21% 27.31%
Asian and Pacific Islander (S)% (S)% (S)%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
Two or More Races (S)% 2.40% (S)%
Hispanic (S)% (S)% (S)%

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!

"Yeiser last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on December 22, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/yeiser-surname-popularity/.

"Yeiser last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/yeiser-surname-popularity/. Accessed 22 December, 2024

Yeiser last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/yeiser-surname-popularity/.

Search for a name

Search for a first or last name to learn more about its origin, meaning, and more.

Simple as that.