2000
#13,618
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,044
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.76
Rare Last name
Kammer
An occupational surname referring to a maker of combs or a person living in or near a small room.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,290 Americans carry the last name Kammer. That puts it at #14,405 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.67 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 149,674 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kammer 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
2.3K
1 in 149,674
Census rank
#14,405
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,997 bearers of the surname Kammer in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.67 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14405th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kammer, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.6%) and Hispanic (1.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kammer
The surname "Kammer" is of German origin, derived from the Old High German word "kamera," meaning "chamber" or "room." It is believed to have emerged in the Middle Ages, around the 11th or 12th century, and was likely an occupational name for someone who worked in or was responsible for a chamber, perhaps in a castle, monastery, or other important building.
The surname is found in several historical records, including the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae Regiae, a collection of medieval charters and documents from Saxony, which mentions a "Heinrich Kammer" in 1295. It is also recorded in the Biberacher Chronik, a chronicle of the town of Biberach in southern Germany, where a "Cuntz Kammer" is mentioned in 1487.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname is in the Nuremberg Kirchenbücher (church records), which lists the birth of a child named Hans Kammer in 1501. Another notable early bearer of the name was Johann Kammer, a Protestant reformer and theologian from Swabia, who lived from 1525 to 1594.
In the 16th and 17th centuries, the surname Kammer was also found in various parts of Switzerland, including the cantons of Zurich, Bern, and Basel. One notable Swiss bearer of the name was Hans Rudolf Kammer, a painter and engraver from Zurich who lived from 1585 to 1643.
Moving into the 18th and 19th centuries, several individuals with the surname Kammer achieved prominence in various fields. For example, Johann Friedrich Kammer (1765-1838) was a German writer and educator, while Johann Kammer (1786-1859) was a German poet and playwright. In the field of music, Franz Kammer (1858-1942) was an Austrian composer and conductor.
Another notable bearer of the surname was the German politician and statesman Hubert Kammer (1891-1966), who served as the Minister President of Rhineland-Palatinate from 1947 to 1952. Additionally, Hans Kammer (1904-1973) was a German actor and film director who appeared in several notable films during the 1930s and 1940s.
While the surname Kammer is most prevalent in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, it has also spread to other parts of the world, particularly through immigration in the 19th and 20th centuries. However, its origins can be traced back to the medieval period in German-speaking regions, where it likely originated as an occupational name for someone responsible for a chamber or room in a significant building.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kammer
Among Census respondents with the surname Kammer, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.6%) and Hispanic (1.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Kammer 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 Kammer surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.0% · 1,878
- Two or more races2.6% · 51
- Hispanic or Latino1.9% · 37
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 15
- Black or African American0.5% · 10
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 6
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kammer
Kammer 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
#11,818
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,648
+604 bearers (+29.5%)
Per 100,000 0.90
Rank movement Up 1,800 places
2020
#14,405
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,997
-651 bearers (-24.6%)
Per 100,000 0.67
Rank movement Down 2,587 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,618 | 2,044 | 0.76 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,818 | 2,648 | 0.90 | +604 bearers (+29.5%) | Up 1,800 places |
| 2020 | #14,405 | 1,997 | 0.67 | -651 bearers (-24.6%) | Down 2,587 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 Kammer 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 | #11,818 | #14,405 | -21.9% |
| Count | 2,648 | 1,997 | -24.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.90 | 0.67 | -25.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kammer bearers went from 2,648 to 1,997 (-24.6% change). The surname moved down 2,587 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,818 to #14,405.
FAQ
Kammer surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kammer?
Name Census estimates that about 2,290 living Americans carry the surname Kammer. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 149,674 residents.
How common is Kammer?
Kammer ranks #14,405 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.67 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 1,997 people with the surname Kammer. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,290), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.67 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.67 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 Kammer.
Has Kammer become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kammer went from 2,648 recorded bearers to 1,997. That is a decrease of 651 (-24.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #11,818 to #14,405.
What does the Census say about the background of Kammer?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kammer, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.6%) and Hispanic (1.9%). 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 Kammer in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.0% (1,878 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kammer appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.0%), Two or More Races (2.6%), Hispanic (1.9%). 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 Kammer (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 Kammer mean?
An occupational surname referring to a maker of combs or a person living in or near a small room. 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 Kammer (0.67 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 have the last name Kammer?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people are called Kammer at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.