2000
#9,055
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,319
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.23
Rare Last name
Hessler
Derived from a German place name, referring to someone from the region of Hesse.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,625 Americans carry the last name Hessler. That puts it at #9,784 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.06 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 94,553 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hessler 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
3.6K
1 in 94,553
Census rank
#9,784
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,161 bearers of the surname Hessler in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.06 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9784th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hessler, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.0%) and Two or More Races (3.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hessler
The surname Hessler is of German origin, derived from the region of Hesse in central Germany. It is believed to have emerged during the Middle Ages, likely between the 11th and 13th centuries.
The name Hessler is thought to be an occupational surname, referring to someone who hailed from the region of Hesse. This region was historically known as Hassia or Hassia-Land, with the name Hessler being a derivative of these earlier regional names.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Hessler can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae Regiae, a collection of medieval Saxon charters and documents. In this record, a certain "Hermannus Hesselaere" is mentioned in 1291, indicating the presence of the name in the late 13th century.
During the 16th century, the surname Hessler began to appear more frequently in various records and documents across Germany. One notable individual bearing this name was Johann Hessler, a German theologian and reformer born in 1492 in the town of Lorch. He played a role in the Protestant Reformation and served as a professor at the University of Wittenberg.
In the 17th century, the Hessler surname can be found in the records of the Thirty Years' War (1618-1648), with several individuals serving as soldiers or officers during this conflict. One such person was Matthias Hessler, a German military officer who fought for the Protestant forces and was mentioned in the memoirs of Prince Christian of Anhalt-Bernburg.
Moving into the 18th century, the name Hessler became associated with various scholars and intellectuals. Johann Philipp Hessler (1737-1810) was a German philosopher and writer who published works on ethics and moral philosophy. Another notable figure was Johann Christian Hessler (1776-1853), a German geographer and cartographer known for his contributions to the study of topography and map-making.
In the 19th century, the Hessler surname continued to be prominent in academic circles. Karl Hessler (1824-1894) was a German philologist and historian who specialized in the study of ancient languages and cultures. He served as a professor at the University of Heidelberg and published numerous works on Greek and Roman literature.
As the surname Hessler spread beyond Germany, it also gained recognition in other parts of Europe and the Americas. One example is John Hessler (1845-1915), an American businessman and philanthropist who founded the Hessler Publishing Company in Cleveland, Ohio.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hessler
Among Census respondents with the surname Hessler, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.0%) and Two or More Races (3.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Hessler 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 Hessler surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.1% · 2,880
- Hispanic or Latino4.0% · 128
- Two or more races3.4% · 109
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 25
- Black or African American0.4% · 13
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 6
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hessler
Hessler 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
#9,437
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,447
+128 bearers (+3.9%)
Per 100,000 1.17
Rank movement Down 382 places
2020
#9,784
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,161
-286 bearers (-8.3%)
Per 100,000 1.06
Rank movement Down 347 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,055 | 3,319 | 1.23 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #9,437 | 3,447 | 1.17 | +128 bearers (+3.9%) | Down 382 places |
| 2020 | #9,784 | 3,161 | 1.06 | -286 bearers (-8.3%) | Down 347 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 Hessler 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 | #9,437 | #9,784 | -3.7% |
| Count | 3,447 | 3,161 | -8.3% |
| Per 100K | 1.17 | 1.06 | -9.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hessler bearers went from 3,447 to 3,161 (-8.3% change). The surname moved down 347 positions in the national ranking, going from #9,437 to #9,784.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Hessler
FAQ
Hessler surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hessler?
Name Census estimates that about 3,625 living Americans carry the surname Hessler. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 94,553 residents.
How common is Hessler?
Hessler ranks #9,784 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.06 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 3,161 people with the surname Hessler. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,625), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.06 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.06 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 Hessler.
Has Hessler become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hessler went from 3,447 recorded bearers to 3,161. That is a decrease of 286 (-8.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #9,437 to #9,784.
What does the Census say about the background of Hessler?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hessler, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.0%) and Two or More Races (3.4%). 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 Hessler in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.1% (2,880 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hessler appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.1%), Hispanic (4.0%), Two or More Races (3.4%). 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 Hessler (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 Hessler mean?
Derived from a German place name, referring to someone from the region of Hesse. 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 Hessler (1.06 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 Americans have the surname Hessler?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.