2000
#8,836
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,412
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.26
Rare Last name
Kammerer
A German occupational surname referring to a maker of combs or a wool comber.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,563 Americans carry the last name Kammerer. That puts it at #9,921 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 96,198 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kammerer 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
3.6K
1 in 96,198
Census rank
#9,921
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,107 bearers of the surname Kammerer in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9921st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kammerer, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Two or More Races (2.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kammerer
The surname KAMMERER originated in Germany, with its earliest known records dating back to the 13th century. It is derived from the German word "Kammer," which means "chamber" or "room," suggesting that the name may have been given to someone who worked in or had some association with rooms or chambers.
The name was particularly prevalent in the regions of Bavaria and Austria, where it was often spelled as "Kammerer" or "Kammrer." In some regions, the name was also written as "Kammermann" or "Kammermacher," further reinforcing its connection to the occupation or trade related to chambers or rooms.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the KAMMERER surname can be found in the Stadtbücher (city books) of Regensburg, Germany, where a certain "Hans Kammerer" is mentioned in an entry from the year 1295. Additionally, the Codex Traditionum Monasterii Mellicensis, a medieval manuscript from the Melk Abbey in Austria, contains references to individuals with the surname KAMMERER in the 14th century.
Notable individuals with the KAMMERER surname throughout history include Johann Kammerer (1528-1605), a German composer and music theorist; Paul Kammerer (1880-1926), an Austrian biologist and controversial figure in the field of evolutionary biology; and Johann Friedrich Kammerer (1752-1833), a German Protestant theologian and writer.
Another individual of note was Johann Kammerer (1759-1840), a German architect and builder who was responsible for the construction of several notable buildings in Munich, including the Bavarian National Museum and the Königsbau, a part of the Munich Residenz complex.
Furthermore, the KAMMERER surname was also associated with the nobility in some regions of Germany. For instance, the von Kammerer family was a noble family from Bavaria, with records of their coat of arms and family lineage dating back to the 16th century.
These are just a few examples of the historical significance and presence of the KAMMERER surname, which has its roots deeply embedded in the regions of Germany and Austria, and has been associated with various professions, occupations, and social classes throughout the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kammerer
Among Census respondents with the surname Kammerer, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Two or More Races (2.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Kammerer 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 Kammerer surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.7% · 2,848
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 115
- Two or more races2.9% · 91
- Black or African American0.8% · 26
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 25
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kammerer
Kammerer 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
#8,946
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,659
+247 bearers (+7.2%)
Per 100,000 1.24
Rank movement Down 110 places
2020
#9,921
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,107
-552 bearers (-15.1%)
Per 100,000 1.04
Rank movement Down 975 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,836 | 3,412 | 1.26 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,946 | 3,659 | 1.24 | +247 bearers (+7.2%) | Down 110 places |
| 2020 | #9,921 | 3,107 | 1.04 | -552 bearers (-15.1%) | Down 975 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 Kammerer 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 | #8,946 | #9,921 | -10.9% |
| Count | 3,659 | 3,107 | -15.1% |
| Per 100K | 1.24 | 1.04 | -16.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kammerer bearers went from 3,659 to 3,107 (-15.1% change). The surname moved down 975 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,946 to #9,921.
FAQ
Kammerer surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kammerer?
Name Census estimates that about 3,563 living Americans carry the surname Kammerer. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 96,198 residents.
How common is Kammerer?
Kammerer ranks #9,921 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.04 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 3,107 people with the surname Kammerer. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,563), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.04 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 Kammerer.
Has Kammerer become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kammerer went from 3,659 recorded bearers to 3,107. That is a decrease of 552 (-15.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,946 to #9,921.
What does the Census say about the background of Kammerer?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kammerer, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Two or More Races (2.9%). 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 Kammerer in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.7% (2,848 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kammerer appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.7%), Hispanic (3.7%), Two or More Races (2.9%). 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 Kammerer (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 Kammerer mean?
A German occupational surname referring to a maker of combs or a wool comber. 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 Kammerer (1.04 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 Americans have the surname Kammerer?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.