The Ness surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 11,037 people carried this name — #3,272 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 26,700 people counted. About the same as in 2000 (11,058).

Look up another surname

Share

What the name means

The meaning of the Ness surname

As a surname in the United Kingdom

Harrison classes it as a Teutonic name: ‘Dweller at a Promontory or Headland’.

Also a dweller on low, marshy ground.

From Henry Harrison, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary, vol. II (London: The Morland Press, 1918), p. 37 · public domain.

In Switzerland’s population statistics

29 people named Ness live in Switzerland.

They live in 6 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Aargau.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they live today

Aargau 7
Basel-Landschaft 5
St. Gallen 5
Zurich 5
Bern 4
Schwyz 3

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 the Nordic population registers

1,871 people named Ness are counted in Norway and Sweden.

Sweden’s figure is from 31 December 2022, the last count Statistics Sweden published. Norway publishes only surnames with 200 or more bearers.

Counted, by country

Norway (2025) 1,791
Sweden (2022) 80

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) · Statistics Norway (SSB, ssb.no), table 12891, 2025 — CC BY 4.0.

In Scotland’s registers today

Ness was recorded 33 times in Scotland’s registers of births, marriages and deaths in 2025.

That made it the 744th most common name in those registers, shared with others on the same count. In 1975, the first year of the series, the count was 55. Each birth counts the child’s surname, each marriage both partners’ and each death the surname of the person who died — a yearly count of registrations, not of the people who live in Scotland.

National Records of Scotland, «Most Common Surnames, 2025» (published 26 May 2026): every surname recorded 10 or more times in the 2025 registers, and the series from 1975 · different spellings are counted separately — © Crown copyright 2026. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

In print

Ness in American newspapers,
1919–1921.

Newspaper page from Great Falls Daily Tribune carrying the name Ness
Great Falls Daily Tribune 1919-03-04
Newspaper page from Great Falls Daily Tribune carrying the name Ness
Great Falls Daily Tribune 1920-09-16
Newspaper page from Great Falls Tribune carrying the name Ness
Great Falls Tribune 1921-04-27

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 1,485 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Ness in Australian newspapers,
1820s–2000s.

19,632 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Ness. The most, 5,152, date from the 1920s. New South Wales has the most articles, but weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, the name stands out most in South Australia, at 1.7 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 7,818
South Australia 3,580
Victoria 3,202
Queensland 2,449
Western Australia 2,171
Tasmania 297
ACT (Canberra) 75
Northern Territory 12

Trove, National Library of Australia (trove.nla.gov.au) · articles in its digitised newspapers that name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Ness.

Who carried it

People named Ness,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Christopher Ness
    Christopher Ness 1621–1705 · astrologer
  • Rupert Ness OSB
    Rupert Ness OSB 1670–1740 · religious person
  • Anna Ness d. 1850
  • Jessie Ness d. 1951
  • Thomas Ness d. 1878
  • colonel Vincentz Bildt, lord of Ness 1606–1658

Wikidata (CC0) · portraits via Wikimedia Commons, shown cropped, in the public domain or CC0 · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Ness,
in the records of 9 countries.

Soldiers, farmers, migrants and neighbours who carried the name and left a trace in public archives. Everyone shown here died long ago or was born more than a century ago.

United States1,127 records

1,127 records of the Ness name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 305
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 226
  • Other U.S. records 596
  1. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Patrick Lawrence Ness

    Born 1941; from Minneapolis, Minnesota. U.S. Navy, pilot; killed in action 1967 in North Vietnam. Buried at Fort Snelling National Cemetery, Minnesota.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Arnold E. Ness

    Born 1921 in Minnesota. Enlisted 1942 at Fort Knox, Kentucky; railroad clerk. U.S. Army Air Forces veteran of World War II; died 1998, buried at Fort Snelling National Cemetery, Minnesota.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  3. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Johanne Ness

    Arrived at Baltimore in 1881 aboard the Strassburg from Bremen, aged 42; farmer. From Prussia, Germany; bound for Baltimore.

    U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted)

Showing 3 of 1,127 records for Ness in the United States.

Counts: U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain) · Sacramento County, Historic Burials (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, 2009 (public domain); U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain).

Norway258 records

258 records of the Ness name in Norway Norway's 1910 census
  1. A page of the 1910 United States census, Milwaukee
    Example: U.S. census, 1910
    Census record Mildrid Ness

    Census of 1910: Kvendset (gaard), Stangvik; maidservant, born 1895 in Stangvik.

    Arkivverket, Digitalarkivet, 1910 census (CC BY 3.0 NO)
  2. A page of the 1910 United States census, Milwaukee
    Example: U.S. census, 1910
    Census record Andreas Ness

    Census of 1910: Nes (gaard), Lørenskogen; farmer, born 1835 in Skedsmo Prgj.

    Arkivverket, Digitalarkivet, 1910 census (CC BY 3.0 NO)
  3. A page of the 1910 United States census, Milwaukee
    Example: U.S. census, 1910
    Census record Andrea Ness

    Census of 1910: Kjeller vestre (Ryensgt), Lillestrøm; housekeeper, born 1865 in Eidskogen.

    Arkivverket, Digitalarkivet, 1910 census (CC BY 3.0 NO)

Showing 3 of 258 records for Ness in Norway.

Counts: Arkivverket, Digitalarkivet, 1910 census (CC BY 3.0 NO). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: U.S. census of 1910, Milwaukee (public domain).

Australia230 records

230 records of the Ness name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 102
  • Queensland State Archives indexes 60
  • Other Australian records 68
  1. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record John Ness

    Arrived in Victoria in 1853 aboard the Ann Dashwood, aged 21; Scottish.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Charles Ness

    Arrived in Queensland in 1890 aboard the Jumna, aged 24.

    Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Graham Eric Ness

    Retired farmer of Coleraine, Victoria; died 1988.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 230 records for Ness in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · ACT Government, Transport Canberra and City Services (CC BY 4.0) · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · State Library of Western Australia (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain).

Germany115 records

115 records of the Ness name in Germany
  • Germany's First World War casualty lists, 1914–1919 110
  • German emigration and citizenship files 4
  • German applications to settle and marry 1
  1. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Emil Neß

    Born 1899; from Stralsund. Reported missing in the Prussian casualty list of 4 December 1918 (Field Artillery Regiment No. 237).

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)
  2. The first page of an emigration file from Gündlingen, Baden, 1883
    Example: German emigration file, 1883
    Emigration record Creszenz Neß

    Left Leubas for North America in 1854.

    Deutsche Digitale Bibliothek / Staatsarchiv Augsburg (CC0)
  3. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Jakob Neß

    Named in an application to settle and marry at Irslbrunn in 1840.

    Deutsche Digitale Bibliothek / Staatsarchiv Landshut (CC0)

Showing 3 of 115 records for Ness in Germany.

Counts: Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0) · Deutsche Digitale Bibliothek (CC0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Deutsche Verlustlisten, Prussian list 1116, 18 April 1918 (scan via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0); Emigration file, Gündlingen, 1883, Landesarchiv Baden-Württemberg, Staatsarchiv Freiburg B 694/1 Nr. 1389 (CC BY 4.0); Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain).

Canada48 records

48 records of the Ness name in Canada
  • City of Calgary cemetery records 10
  • City of Winnipeg cemetery records 10
  • Other Canadian records 28
  1. The first page of an emigration file from Gündlingen, Baden, 1883
    Example: German emigration file, 1883
    Emigration record Lucy Ness

    Left New York in 1783 aboard the Montague, bound for St. Johns, aged 29.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.
  2. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Oscar Ness

    Died 1962, aged 76; buried at St. Vital Cemetery, Winnipeg, Manitoba.

    City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg.
  3. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Douglas Richard Ness

    Buried in 1983 at Queen's Park Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta, aged 20.

    City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary.

Showing 3 of 48 records for Ness in Canada.

Counts: City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. · City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg. · Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · City of Niagara Falls. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Niagara Falls. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Emigration file, Gündlingen, 1883, Landesarchiv Baden-Württemberg, Staatsarchiv Freiburg B 694/1 Nr. 1389 (CC BY 4.0); Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0).

United Kingdom27 records

27 records of the Ness name in the United Kingdom
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 14
  • Stirling Council burial records 7
  • Scottish rolls of honour, First World War 6
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Mary Gilmour McNab Ness

    Buried in 1917 at Callander Cemetery, Stirling, Scotland, aged 55.

    Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
  2. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record James Sharp Ness

    Born 1896. Died 1917. Named in the University of Edinburgh roll of honour, 1914-1919.

    National Library of Scotland, Rolls of Honour (public domain)
  3. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record A. Ness

    Royal Warwickshire Regiment. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1918.

    National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain)

Showing 3 of 27 records for Ness in the United Kingdom.

Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. · National Library of Scotland, Rolls of Honour (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0); C. & E. Morton Ltd roll of honour, 1914–1919, photo by Adrian S Pye via Geograph (CC BY-SA 2.0).

Netherlands14 records

14 records of the Ness name in the Netherlands
  • Dutch population registers 12
  • Dutch church registers before 1811 2
  1. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Neeltjen Ness

    Married in 1675 in Vianen.

    Open Archives, Het Utrechts Archief (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Meindert Ness

    Buried in 1808 in Leeuwarden.

    Open Archives, AlleFriezen (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the 1910 United States census, Milwaukee
    Example: U.S. census, 1910
    Population register Christina Barbara Ness

    In the population register of Amsterdam; born 1856 in Frenkespue.

    Open Archives, Stadsarchief Amsterdam (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 14 records for Ness in the Netherlands.

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain); Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0); U.S. census of 1910, Milwaukee (public domain).

France5 records

5 records of the Ness name in France France's national death register, 1970–2001
  1. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Simon Ness

    Born 1931 in Paris; died 1995 in Montfermeil (Seine-Saint-Denis).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)
  2. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Mariane Ness

    Born 1911 in Great Britain; died 1998 in Vandœuvre-lès-Nancy (Meurthe-et-Moselle).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)

Showing 2 of 5 records for Ness in France.

Counts: Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Death register of Nice, 1930, Archives départementales des Alpes-Maritimes (public domain).

New Zealand1 record

1 record of the Ness name in New Zealand Christchurch City cemetery records
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record James Ness

    Died 1909, aged 54; buried at Linwood Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)

Counts: Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Ness.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Ness 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.

See the Ness volume
Scroll to Top