2000
#6,217
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,065
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.88
Rare Last name
Wester
A habitational surname referring to someone who lived to the west of a settlement or landmark.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,847 Americans carry the last name Wester. That puts it at #6,410 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.71 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 58,621 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Wester 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Wester with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
5.8K
1 in 58,621
Census rank
#6,410
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,099 bearers of the surname Wester in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.71 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6410th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Wester, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.4%. The next largest groups are Black (8.2%) and Hispanic (3.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Wester
The surname Wester is of Anglo-Saxon origin, derived from the Old English word "west", meaning "westerly" or "from the west". It is believed to have originated in England during the medieval period, possibly as a locational name for someone who lived to the west of a particular town or village.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Wester can be found in the Domesday Book, a manuscript record of landowners in England compiled in 1086 by order of William the Conqueror. In the Domesday Book, there are several entries for individuals with the surname Wester or similar spellings such as Westur or Westere.
During the 13th and 14th centuries, the surname Wester began to appear more frequently in various historical records, including tax rolls, court documents, and parish registers. Some notable individuals with the surname Wester from this period include John Wester, a landowner in Suffolk mentioned in the Hundred Rolls of 1273, and William Wester, a merchant from London recorded in the city's civic records in 1381.
In the 16th century, the surname Wester was associated with several notable figures, such as Thomas Wester (c. 1500-1568), an English clergyman and academic who served as the Dean of Windsor from 1558 until his death. Another prominent individual was Richard Wester (1564-1613), a playwright and poet who was a contemporary of William Shakespeare.
As the surname spread across different regions of England, it evolved into various spelling variations, including Westere, Westure, and Westor. Some of these variations were influenced by the names of specific places or towns, such as Westerham in Kent or Weston in Somerset.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, several notable individuals bore the Wester surname, including John Wester (1629-1692), a prominent merchant and philanthropist from Bristol, and Edward Wester (1725-1799), a British army officer who served in the American Revolutionary War.
Throughout its history, the surname Wester has been carried by individuals from various walks of life, including scholars, artists, soldiers, and merchants. While not as widely prevalent as some other English surnames, it remains a part of the rich tapestry of family names that reflect the diverse cultural and linguistic influences that have shaped the English language over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Wester
Among Census respondents with the surname Wester, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.4%. The next largest groups are Black (8.2%) and Hispanic (3.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Wester 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 Wester surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White83.4% · 4,253
- Black or African American8.2% · 420
- Hispanic or Latino3.9% · 199
- Two or more races3.1% · 160
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 39
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 28
Timeline
Historical Census data for Wester
Wester 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
#6,532
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,187
+122 bearers (+2.4%)
Per 100,000 1.76
Rank movement Down 315 places
2020
#6,410
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,099
-88 bearers (-1.7%)
Per 100,000 1.71
Rank movement Up 122 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,217 | 5,065 | 1.88 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,532 | 5,187 | 1.76 | +122 bearers (+2.4%) | Down 315 places |
| 2020 | #6,410 | 5,099 | 1.71 | -88 bearers (-1.7%) | Up 122 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 Wester 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 | #6,532 | #6,410 | 1.9% |
| Count | 5,187 | 5,099 | -1.7% |
| Per 100K | 1.76 | 1.71 | -3.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Wester bearers went from 5,187 to 5,099 (-1.7% change). The surname moved up 122 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,532 to #6,410.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Wester
FAQ
Wester surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Wester?
Name Census estimates that about 5,847 living Americans carry the surname Wester. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 58,621 residents.
How common is Wester?
Wester ranks #6,410 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.71 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,099 people with the surname Wester. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,847), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.71 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.71 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Wester.
Has Wester become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Wester went from 5,187 recorded bearers to 5,099. That is a decrease of 88 (-1.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #6,532 to #6,410.
What does the Census say about the background of Wester?
Among Census respondents with the surname Wester, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.4%. The next largest groups are Black (8.2%) and Hispanic (3.9%). 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 Wester in the 2020 Census, accounting for 83.4% (4,253 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Wester appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (83.4%), Black (8.2%), Hispanic (3.9%). 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 Wester (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 Wester mean?
A habitational surname referring to someone who lived to the west of a settlement or landmark. 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 Wester (1.71 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 Wester?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.