2000
#11,660
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,465
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.91
Rare Last name
Kalish
A Jewish surname derived from the town of Kalisz in western Poland or referring to someone from Kalisz.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,407 Americans carry the last name Kalish. That puts it at #13,789 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.70 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 142,399 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kalish surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
2.4K
1 in 142,399
Census rank
#13,789
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,099 bearers of the surname Kalish in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.70 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13789th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kalish, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.6%) and Hispanic (2.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kalish
The surname Kalish has its origins in Eastern Europe, specifically in the region that is now modern-day Poland. It is believed to have emerged in the late 15th or early 16th century, during a time of significant migration and cultural exchanges in the region.
One of the earliest documented references to the name Kalish can be found in a Polish census record from the year 1567, which lists a family bearing this surname residing in the town of Kalisz, located in central Poland. It is likely that the name Kalish is derived from the place name Kalisz, which itself comes from the Slavic word "kalina," meaning "viburnum" or a type of shrub.
In the 17th century, the Kalish surname began to spread beyond the borders of Poland, as families with this name migrated to other parts of Eastern Europe, including present-day Ukraine, Belarus, and Russia. This diaspora was driven by various factors, such as economic opportunities, religious persecution, and political instability.
One notable figure bearing the Kalish surname was Yehuda Kalish, a prominent Polish-Jewish scholar and Talmudist who lived in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. He authored several important works on Jewish law and theology, including "Sefer Ha-Zikaron" and "Sefer Ha-Hayyim."
Another historically significant individual with the Kalish surname was Mikhail Kalish, a Russian military officer who served in the Napoleonic Wars. He was born in 1787 and gained recognition for his bravery and leadership during the Battle of Borodino in 1812.
In the 19th century, the Kalish surname began to appear in records from other parts of Europe, as well as in the Americas, as families emigrated from Eastern Europe in search of new opportunities. For example, Isaac Kalish, born in 1818 in Poland, was one of the earliest known Jewish settlers in the city of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in the United States.
Another notable figure was Isidor Kalish, a Russian-American painter and writer who lived from 1886 to 1954. He was known for his portraits and landscapes, as well as his memoirs, which provided valuable insights into the lives of Jewish immigrants in the early 20th century.
Throughout its history, the Kalish surname has been subject to various spellings and variations, such as Kalisch, Kališ, and Kaliszewski, reflecting the diverse linguistic and cultural influences in the regions where it was found.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kalish
Among Census respondents with the surname Kalish, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.6%) and Hispanic (2.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Kalish bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Kalish surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.1% · 1,976
- Two or more races2.6% · 54
- Hispanic or Latino2.0% · 42
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 16
- Black or African American0.5% · 10
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kalish
Kalish appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#10,974
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,899
+434 bearers (+17.6%)
Per 100,000 0.98
Rank movement Up 686 places
2020
#13,789
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,099
-800 bearers (-27.6%)
Per 100,000 0.70
Rank movement Down 2,815 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,660 | 2,465 | 0.91 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,974 | 2,899 | 0.98 | +434 bearers (+17.6%) | Up 686 places |
| 2020 | #13,789 | 2,099 | 0.70 | -800 bearers (-27.6%) | Down 2,815 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Kalish surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #10,974 | #13,789 | -25.7% |
| Count | 2,899 | 2,099 | -27.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.98 | 0.70 | -28.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kalish bearers went from 2,899 to 2,099 (-27.6% change). The surname moved down 2,815 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,974 to #13,789.
FAQ
Kalish surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kalish?
Name Census estimates that about 2,407 living Americans carry the surname Kalish. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 142,399 residents.
How common is Kalish?
Kalish ranks #13,789 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.70 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,099 people with the surname Kalish. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,407), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.7 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.70 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Kalish.
Has Kalish become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kalish went from 2,899 recorded bearers to 2,099. That is a decrease of 800 (-27.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,974 to #13,789.
What does the Census say about the background of Kalish?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kalish, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.6%) and Hispanic (2.0%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Kalish in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.1% (1,976 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kalish appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.1%), Two or More Races (2.6%), Hispanic (2.0%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Kalish (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Kalish mean?
A Jewish surname derived from the town of Kalisz in western Poland or referring to someone from Kalisz. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Kalish (0.70 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people share the surname Kalish?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.