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

Zeigler, 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 Zeigler surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Zeigler in America

Zeigler is the 2742nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Zeigler surname appeared 13,135 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 4 people would have the surname Zeigler.

We can also compare 2010 data for Zeigler 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 Zeigler

The surname Zeigler has its origins in the German language and is first recorded in the 14th century. It is derived from the occupation of a maker or seller of roof tiles, known as a "Ziegler" or "Ziegeler" in German. This occupation was particularly prevalent in regions of central and southern Germany, where clay was readily available for the production of roof tiles.

The earliest known record of the Zeigler surname appears in the Heidelberg tax rolls from the year 1384, where a "Heinrich Ziegeler" is listed as a resident. This suggests that the name had already been established as a hereditary surname in the Heidelberg area by the late 14th century.

In the 15th century, the Zeigler name is found in various legal and church records throughout the German states, indicating its widespread use. For instance, a "Hans Ziegler" is mentioned in a land deed from the town of Nuremberg in 1427.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, the Zeigler surname began to spread beyond the borders of Germany as a result of migration and religious persecution. Notable individuals bearing this name include Johann Ziegler (1480-1549), a German humanist scholar and historian, and Caspar Ziegler (1621-1690), a German theologian and professor at the University of Wittenberg.

As the name spread, it underwent various spelling variations, such as Zeygler, Zeygeler, and Ziegler. These variations were often influenced by local dialects and the individual preferences of scribes and record-keepers.

In the 18th and 19th centuries, several prominent figures with the Zeigler surname emerged, including Johann Gottfried Zeigler (1726-1798), a German theologian and writer, and Friedrich Wilhelm von Zeigler (1763-1827), a Prussian general who served in the Napoleonic Wars.

Other notable individuals with this surname include Carl Zeigler (1842-1913), an American politician and businessman who served as the 14th Governor of Oregon, and Ernst Zeigler (1868-1948), a German zoologist and professor at the University of Munich.

The Zeigler surname has also been associated with various place names, such as Zeiglersheim, a village in Bavaria, Germany, and Zeiglerrieden, a municipality in the district of Dingolfing-Landau, also in Bavaria.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Zeigler

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

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

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

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