Explore the Family Name Whistler

The meaning of Whistler

English: from Middle English whistlere ‘piper, flute player’, an agent derivative of Middle English whistle (Old English hwistle, of imitative origin), hence an occupational name for a player on a pipe or flute.

Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.

How common is the last name Whistler in the United States?

Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the surname Whistler's popularity changed slightly between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, it was ranked as the 21,335th most popular surname in the United States and in 2010, it dropped to the 22,047th spot, marking a change of -3.34%. However, the actual count of people with the Whistler surname increased from 1,144 in 2000 to 1,176 in 2010, an increase of 2.8%. The proportion of people per 100k with the surname Whistler also decreased by -4.76% in the same period.

	2000	2010	Change
Rank	#21,335	#22,047	-3.34%
Count	1,144	1,176	2.8%
Proportion per 100k	0.42	0.4	-4.76%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Whistler

Looking at the ethnic identity associated with the surname Whistler, based on the Decennial U.S. Census, there were no significant changes between 2000 and 2010. The majority of individuals with this surname identified as White, with 90.56% in 2000 and 89.97% in 2010. The percentage of those who identified as Hispanic saw a slight increase from 3.15% to 3.4%. There was also a notable increase in individuals who identified as belonging to two or more races, up by 45.71%. Conversely, the percentage of American Indian and Alaskan Natives dropped by 9.16%. No individuals with the Whistler surname identified as Asian/Pacific Islander or Black during these years.

	2000	2010	Change
White	90.56%	89.97%	-0.65%
Hispanic	3.15%	3.4%	7.94%
Two or More Races	2.1%	3.06%	45.71%
American Indian and Alaskan Native	2.62%	2.38%	-9.16%
Asian/Pacific Islander	0%	0%	0%
Black	0%	0%	0%