How common is the surname Switzer?

11,114 people in the United States had the surname Switzer in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 27,780 Americans. It ranked 3,248th of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named Switzer?

Kathrine Switzer, American marathon runner, author, and television commentator, followed by Carl Switzer.

Where is the surname Switzer most common?

Wikidata records people named Switzer in the United States and Germany.

How do you pronounce Switzer?

Switzer is /ˈswɪtsɚ/, 2 syllables.

Is the surname Switzer getting more or less common?

Less common. 11,211 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 11,114 in 2010, down 0.9%.

The surname Switzer

A surname, carried by 11,114 people in the United States.

Pronounced /ˈswɪtsɚ/ 2 syllables Soundex S326

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Switzer is more common than 98% of them.

Origin

From early New High German Schwytzer (modern High German Schweizer) "a Swiss person", especially "a Swiss soldier or mercenary", a designation adopted in the 16th century, ultimately from the toponym Swīz "Schwyz". More at Swiss.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 11,114 people named Switzer in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 27,780 Americans. That is down 0.9% since 2000, when the Census counted 11,211.

#3,248

rank among US surnames

11,114

people in 2010

3.8

per 100,000 Americans

-0.9%

change since 2000 (was #2,953)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#3,239	Herzog	11,146	27,700
#3,240	Kiefer	11,141	27,713
#3,241	Ayres	11,139	27,718
#3,243	Amin	11,137	27,723
#3,244	Warden	11,135	27,727
#3,245	Muir	11,130	27,740
#3,246	Samson	11,123	27,757

Who is named Switzer

Race and Hispanic origin as people reported it in the 2010 Census

91% of people named Switzer identified as white (not Hispanic), 3.6% as Black (not Hispanic) and 2.6% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).

White (not Hispanic) 91%
Black (not Hispanic) 3.6%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.6%
Two or more races 1.7%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.7%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.4%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Switzers

4 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

Kathrine Switzer
American marathon runner, author, and television commentator, born 1947
Carl Switzer
American actor (1927-1959)
Harold "Slim" Switzer
American actor (1925-1967)
Barry Switzer
American football player and coach, born 1937

Notable Switzers come mostly from the United States (3) and Germany (1).

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Surnames that sound like Switzer

Switzer has the Soundex code S326, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code S326.

Questions

Where does the surname Switzer come from?: From early New High German Schwytzer (modern High German Schweizer) "a Swiss person", especially "a Swiss soldier or mercenary", a designation adopted in the 16th century, ultimately from the toponym Swīz "Schwyz". More at Swiss.
How common is the surname Switzer?: 11,114 people in the United States had the surname Switzer in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 27,780 Americans. It ranked 3,248th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Switzer?: In the 2010 Census, 91% of people named Switzer identified as white (not Hispanic), and 3.6% as Black (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named Switzer?: Kathrine Switzer, American marathon runner, author, and television commentator, followed by Carl Switzer.
Where is the surname Switzer most common?: Wikidata records people named Switzer in the United States and Germany.
How do you pronounce Switzer?: Switzer is /ˈswɪtsɚ/, 2 syllables.
Is the surname Switzer getting more or less common?: Less common. 11,211 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 11,114 in 2010, down 0.9%.