Explore the Family Name Zerr

The meaning of Zerr

South German: nickname for a rowdy or a cantankerous person, from a derivative of Middle High German zerren ‘to tear, to split; to quarrel, to fight’. This surname is also found in France (Alsace). Compare Zarr.

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

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

According to the Decennial U.S. Census, the surname Zerr has seen a slight decrease in popularity between 2000 and 2010. The name was ranked 16,899th most popular in 2000, sliding to the 18,144th spot by 2010, marking a 7.37% decline in rank. Despite this drop in rank, the count of individuals with the surname Zerr only decreased slightly from 1,554 in 2000 to 1,534 in 2010, a decline of just 1.29%. The proportion of people named Zerr per 100,000 also declined by 10.34%.

	2000	2010	Change
Rank	#16,899	#18,144	-7.37%
Count	1,554	1,534	-1.29%
Proportion per 100k	0.58	0.52	-10.34%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Zerr

Looking at the ethnic identity of those carrying the surname Zerr based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the majority identified as White, although there was a minor decrease from 95.75% in 2000 to 94.39% in 2010. During the same decade, there were increases across other ethnicities. The Hispanic representation grew by 21.78%, while those identifying as two or more races increased by 41.24%. There was also a recorded presence of the surname within the Asian/Pacific Islander ethnicity, increasing slightly from 0.45% to 0.46%. Additionally, the Black community and American Indian and Alaskan Native communities started to have representation, moving from zero to 0.33% and 0.72% respectively.

	2000	2010	Change
White	95.75%	94.39%	-1.42%
Hispanic	2.25%	2.74%	21.78%
Two or More Races	0.97%	1.37%	41.24%
American Indian and Alaskan Native	0%	0.72%	0%
Asian/Pacific Islander	0.45%	0.46%	2.22%
Black	0%	0.33%	0%