The Maier surname
In the 2010 U.S. Census, 14,135 people carried this name — #2,557 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 20,900 people counted. That is up 1% from 13,929 in 2000.
What the name means
The meaning of the Maier surname
A surname originating as an occupation, variant of Meier.
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Maier» (German), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.
In Switzerland’s population statistics
2,354 people named Maier live in Switzerland.
They live in 24 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Zurich.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO), «Surnames of the permanent resident population by canton», 2025, opendata.swiss/en/dataset/nachnamen-der-standigen-wohnbevolkerung-nach-kanton3 · names with fewer than 3 bearers in a canton are not published.
In Argentina’s national register
At least 1,660 people named Maier live in Argentina.
RENAPER only publishes a name in a province when more than ten people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Buenos Aires Province.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.
In France’s civil register
France’s register of deaths holds 530 people named Maier.
126 of them were born outside France. Those born in France came from 33 départements, most often Bas-Rhin.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they were born
Fichier des personnes décédées, INSEE — Licence Ouverte 2.0 · deaths recorded in France since 1970, by place of birth.
In Poland’s population register
115 people named Maier have a registered home in Poland.
Of the 344 in Poland’s national register, these are the ones with a permanent address on file. They live in 12 of Poland’s 16 voivodeships, most of all in Silesian.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they live today
PESEL register, Ministry of Digital Affairs of Poland (dane.gov.pl) — CC0 · living people by voivodeship of permanent residence, 20 January 2026.
In Belgium’s population register
At least 40 people named Maier live in Belgium.
Statbel only publishes a name in a municipality when five or more people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Antwerp.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they live today
Statbel (Statistics Belgium), family names of the population by municipality, 1 January 2026 — CC BY 4.0.
In the Nordic population registers
148 people named Maier are counted in Sweden and Finland.
Sweden’s figure is from 31 December 2022, the last count Statistics Sweden published. Finland counts its citizens, at home or abroad.
Counted, by country
Own calculations based on data from Statistics Sweden (SCB), surnames with at least two bearers, 31 December 2022 — CC BY 4.0 (names with 20 or more bearers shown) · Digital and Population Data Services Agency (DVV), Finland, surname statistics, August 2026 — CC BY 4.0.
In print
Maier in American newspapers,
1904–1953.
Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 19,100,101 pages in all carry the name.
Who carried it
People named Maier,
with a public archive behind them.
-
Michael Maier 1568–1622 · composer -
Ernst Theophil Maier 1651–1727 · jurist -
Carl Christian Maier 1851–1938 · farmer -
Amanda Röntgen-Maier 1853–1894 · composer -
Coelestin Maier 1871–1935 · religious role
Wikidata and Wikimedia Commons (CC0) · 177 lives in all are documented under this name.
Nearby in the index
Surnames next to Maier.
- Mahon 9,441 · U.S. census
- Mahr 1,831 · U.S. census
- Mahy 184 · U.S. census
- Mai 17,445 · U.S. census
- Maia 1,018 · U.S. census
- Maida 2,084 · U.S. census
- Maignan 421 · U.S. census
- Mailhot 1,105 · U.S. census
- Maillard 349 · U.S. census
- Maille 507 · U.S. census
- Maillet 1,603 · U.S. census
- Mailliard 240 · U.S. census
When the index is not enough
This page says where Maier is.
A volume says what happened to it.
Every page in the index is free and stays free. The Heritage Volume is the long form: the full paper trail, the arms, the crossing — bound, and yours.