Meester Last Name: Meaning and Heraldic Roots

In old registers, Meester often stands in for Meister. Read literally, Meester points to “master craftsman”.

• Meester writes “e” in place of the “i” found in Meister, a typical scribal difference.
• Regional accents shaped spellings long before dictionaries fixed them.
• Names that sound alike, such as Meyster, are easily confused in old records.
• Other spellings include Meesters, Mester and Mesters.
• In the 2010 US Census, 502 Americans gave Meester as their last name (rank 43,077). That puts it inside the top 50,000 US surnames.

Meester coat of arms

Looking for a Meester coat of arms? Arms were granted to families, not to surnames, and our research shows which heraldic tradition fits yours. For the full story, order the Meester surname pack.