Find out how popular the last name Kant is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Kant.

Kant, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Kant surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Kant in America

Kant is the 32079th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Kant surname appeared 719 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Kant.

We can also compare 2010 data for Kant to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Kant

The surname Kant has its origins in Germany, where it first appeared in the early 13th century. It is believed to have derived from the Middle Low German word "kant," which means "edge" or "border." This suggests that the name may have initially been given to someone who lived on the outskirts of a town or village.

In the late 13th century, there are records of a family named Kant residing in the city of Königsberg, which was then part of the Prussian region of the Holy Roman Empire. One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Johannes Kant, who was born in Königsberg around 1280.

The Kant surname gained significant prominence in the 18th century due to the renowned philosopher Immanuel Kant, who was born in 1724 in Königsberg. Kant's groundbreaking works, such as the "Critique of Pure Reason" and "Critique of Practical Reason," had a profound impact on Western philosophy and laid the foundation for modern metaphysics and epistemology.

Another notable figure with the Kant surname was Hermann Kant, a German mathematician and physicist born in 1853. He made significant contributions to the field of theoretical physics, particularly in the areas of thermodynamics and kinetic theory of gases.

In the 19th century, the Kant family spread across various regions of Germany, as well as to neighboring countries like Poland and Russia. One prominent member was Jakob Kant, a Russian military officer and explorer born in 1814, who led several expeditions to Central Asia and the Caucasus region.

The surname Kant can also be found in historical records from the Netherlands, where it is believed to have been introduced by German immigrants. One such example is the Dutch philosopher and theologian Johannes Kant, who lived in the 17th century and was a prominent figure in the Dutch Reformed Church.

Throughout its history, the Kant surname has been associated with a variety of professions, including academia, military service, and religious leadership. However, it remains most closely linked to the legacy of Immanuel Kant, whose philosophical contributions have had a lasting impact on Western thought and continue to shape intellectual discourse to this day.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Kant

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Kant.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Kant was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Kant has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Kant was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Kant, please contact us.

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