Casper History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Germany
Poland

The Polish Casper surname is of patronymic origin, it is a surname that was created from the first name of the father of the original bearer of the name. The Christian name Kaspar is of Old Germanic origin, deriving from the Persian word for "Treasurer." The name became popular as it had been ascribed by popular tradition in Europe to one of the three Magi.

Early Origins of the Casper family

The surname Casper was first found in Polesie, the largest province of Poland. It is inhabited by Ruthenians, called Polesians, of Ukrainian descent. The main towns are those of Brest Litovsk, Pinsk, Kobryn, Kamenets, Litovsk, and Luninets. It was in this province that the renowned Radziwills and Sapiehas held their vast estates. Wolczyn was the seat of the Czartoryski family. The earliest recorded instance of this surname found was of Johann Caspar listed in the in the "Regesta Episcoporum Constantiensium" in 1441 as being a chaplain at Schaffhausen, Germany. The Casper surname became noted for its many branches in the region, some were elevated to the ranks of nobility as they grew in power and influence.

Early History of the Casper family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Casper research. Another 108 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1571, 1772, 1856 and 1859 are included under the topic Early Casper History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Casper Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Kaspor, Kasparek, Kaspar, Kasspair, Kasparik, Caspar, von Caspar, Casper, Caspergaard, Kasparski, Kasperski and many more.

Early Notables of the Casper family

More information is included under the topic Early Casper Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Casper Ranking

In the United States, the name Casper is the 2,842^nd most popular surname with an estimated 9,948 people with that name. 1

Casper migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Casper Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Christie Casper, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1743 2
Valantine Casper, aged 18, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1748 2
Valentin Casper, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1748 2
Johann Michael Casper, who arrived in Carolina in 1752 2
Conrath Casper, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1754 2
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Casper Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Jacob Casper, who arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1805 2
George Casper who immigrated to Ohio in 1809
Nicolas Casper, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1841 2
Danz Casper, who landed in Galveston Tex in 1845 2
A Casper, who landed in Mississippi in 1847 2
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Casper (post 1700) +

Colonel, USAF, RET. John H. Casper, NASA Astronaut with over 825 hours in space 3
William Earl "Billy" Casper (1931-2015), American professional golfer, who won the US Open (1959, 1966) and the Masters (1970) 4
Gerhard Casper (b. 1937), American (German-born) educator, president of Stanford University 1992-2000
Albert Casper Schweitzer (1882-1969), American Major League Baseball outfielder for the St. Louis Browns
Claude Casper Poulan (1915-1995), American founder of Poulan Chain Saws and the inventor of bow guide
John Casper Branner (1903-1966), U.S. geologist and President of Stanford University
Casper R. Taylor Jr. (1934-2023), American politician, 105th Speaker of the Maryland House of Delegates from 1994 to 2003
Casper Feddema, American actor, known for Groeten van Gerri and VIPS TV: Reportages (2011)
Casper M. Sanger, American politician, Presidential Elector for Wisconsin, 1876
Casper A. Baadan, American politician, Member of New York State Senate 6th District, 1876-77 5

Citations +

"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
NASA Astronauts Homepage. (Retrieved 2010, September 27) John Casper. Retrieved from http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/casper.html
William Casper. (Retrieved 2010, September 27) William Casper. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billy_Casper
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, January 28) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html