# Hester (surname)

Source: https://namelineage.com/surname/hester/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. Counts from the US Census Bureau; origin and etymology from Wiktionary; bearers from Wikidata. Data updated 2026-11-11.

A surname from German.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Origin | German |
| Type | not recorded |
| People in the US (2010 Census) | 35,642 |
| US rank (2010) | 976 of 162,253 |
| How often | about 1 in every 8,662 people |
| Change since 2000 | +2.8% (34,675 in 2000) |
| Pronunciation | /ˈhɛstɚ/, 2 syllables |
| Variant spellings | none recorded |

## Etymology

From the Latin form of Esther.

## Who carries it

Share of people named Hester in the 2010 US Census by the Census's own race and ethnicity groups. The Census suppresses a share when the count behind it is small.

| Group | Share |
|---|---|
| White (not Hispanic) | 73% |
| Black (not Hispanic) | 22% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 1.8% |
| Asian and Pacific Islander | 0.5% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 0.5% |
| Two or more races | 2.2% |

## Where

Wikidata records people named Hester in the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand.

## People named Hester

- Michael Hester, Australian soccer referee and New Zealand rugby union footballer
- Carl Hester, British dressage rider
- Devin Hester, American football player (born 1982)
- Paul Hester, Australian musician (1959–2005)
- Rita Hester, African American trans woman, murder victim, and inspirer of Transgender Day of Remembranc
- Laurel Hester, American activist and police officer (1956-2006)
- Joy Hester, Australian painter (1920-1960)
- Stephen Hester, British banker

## Similar surnames

Hector, Hoekstra, Hightower, Hagedorn, Hagstrom, Heckathorn.

## How to read these numbers

A Census count is people alive and counted in 2010, not births, and names occurring fewer than 100 times are not published at all. Ethnicity shares are the Census's own categories.