Explore the Family Name Wiersma

The meaning of Wiersma

West Frisian and Dutch: 1. patronymic, formed with the suffix -ma ‘(one of the) men of’, from a genitivized form of Wier 1. 2. topographic name from Middle Dutch wier(de) ‘artificial dwelling mound’ (see Wier 2) + the same Frisian suffix as in 1 above.

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

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

The surname Wiersma has seen a slight decrease in popularity within the United States, according to data from the Decennial U.S. Census. In 2000, Wiersma was ranked 13,863rd most common surname, a position that fell slightly to 14,279th in 2010. This represents a change of -3.0% over the decade. Despite this drop in ranking, the actual number of individuals with the surname increased from 1,999 to 2,097, showing a growth rate of 4.9%. The proportion of people named Wiersma per 100,000 residents also decreased slightly from 0.74 to 0.71.

	2000	2010	Change
Rank	#13,863	#14,279	-3%
Count	1,999	2,097	4.9%
Proportion per 100k	0.74	0.71	-4.05%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Wiersma

The ethnicity associated with the surname Wiersma is predominantly white, again based on data from the Decennial U.S. Census. In 2000, 96.9% of those with the Wiersma name identified as white, which slightly decreased to 95.66% by 2010. There was a 24% decrease in individuals identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander during the same period. However, interestingly, there was a notable increase of 69.23% in individuals who identify with two or more races and a 45.19% rise in those identifying as Hispanic. No Wiersmas reported as Black or American Indian and Alaskan Native in either 2000 or 2010.

	2000	2010	Change
White	96.9%	95.66%	-1.28%
Hispanic	1.35%	1.96%	45.19%
Two or More Races	0.65%	1.1%	69.23%
Asian/Pacific Islander	1%	0.76%	-24%
Black	0%	0%	0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native	0%	0%	0%