# Whistler (surname)

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

A surname.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Origin | English |
| Type | occupational, named after the work an ancestor did |
| People in the US (2010 Census) | 1,176 |
| US rank (2010) | 22,047 of 162,253 |
| How often | about 1 in every 262,539 people |
| Change since 2000 | +2.8% (1,144 in 2000) |
| Pronunciation | not recorded |
| Variant spellings | Wissler, Whiseller, Whisler |

## Etymology

Continuing the Middle English Wistler, Wyzelere, an occupational surname from the Old English hwistlere (“piper”).

## Who carries it

Share of people named Whistler 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) | 90% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 3.4% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 2.4% |
| Two or more races | 3.1% |

## Where

Wikidata records people named Whistler in the United States.

## People named Whistler

- James McNeill Whistler, American painter (1834-1903)

## Similar surnames

Westlake, Westlund, Westley, Wachtel, Westling.

## 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.