2000
#131,366
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 119
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Kattenhorn
A surname derived from a place name referring to a cat's horn-shaped promontory.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 131 Americans carry the last name Kattenhorn. That puts it at #146,495 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,616,445 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kattenhorn 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Kattenhorn with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
131
1 in 2,616,445
Census rank
#146,495
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
114
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 114 bearers of the surname Kattenhorn in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 146495th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kattenhorn, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.4%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kattenhorn
The surname Kattenhorn has its origins in the Low German language and is believed to have emerged in the northern regions of Germany during the late medieval period, approximately between the 13th and 15th centuries. The name is thought to be derived from the Old German words "katt" meaning cat, and "horn" signifying a small hill or promontory, suggesting a possible connection to a geographic feature or settlement where cats were commonly found.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the Kattenhorn surname can be traced back to the Hanseatic city of Lübeck in the 14th century, where a merchant named Hans Kattenhorn is documented as having traded goods along the Baltic Sea trade routes. This suggests that the name was already established in the region by that time.
In the 16th century, records from the town of Wismar in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany, mention a family by the name of Kattenhorn who were involved in the local fishing industry. The name's presence in this coastal area lends credence to the theory of its derivation from a place name associated with a prominent hill or promontory.
During the 17th century, a notable figure bearing the Kattenhorn surname was Johann Kattenhorn, a Lutheran minister and theologian born in Rostock in 1625. He authored several religious treatises and was renowned for his sermons and scholarly works.
In the late 18th century, a military officer named Friedrich Kattenhorn served in the Prussian army under Frederick the Great. He was born in Königsberg (now Kaliningrad, Russia) in 1742 and participated in the Seven Years' War, earning recognition for his bravery on the battlefield.
Another notable individual with the Kattenhorn surname was Wilhelm Kattenhorn, a German painter and illustrator who lived from 1819 to 1897. He was celebrated for his detailed landscape paintings depicting scenes from the Black Forest region of Germany, where he spent a significant portion of his artistic career.
While the Kattenhorn surname is relatively uncommon today, it remains a part of Germany's rich cultural heritage, tracing its roots back to the medieval era and carrying the echoes of a time when place names and occupations were integral to the formation of family names.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kattenhorn
Among Census respondents with the surname Kattenhorn, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.4%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Kattenhorn 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 Kattenhorn surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.7% · 108
- Hispanic or Latino4.4% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kattenhorn
Kattenhorn 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
#148,347
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
-8 bearers (-6.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 16,981 places
2020
#146,495
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
+3 bearers (+2.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 1,852 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #131,366 | 119 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #148,347 | 111 | 0.04 | -8 bearers (-6.7%) | Down 16,981 places |
| 2020 | #146,495 | 114 | 0.04 | +3 bearers (+2.7%) | Up 1,852 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 Kattenhorn 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 | #148,347 | #146,495 | 1.2% |
| Count | 111 | 114 | 2.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -4.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kattenhorn bearers went from 111 to 114 (+2.7% change). The surname moved up 1,852 positions in the national ranking, going from #148,347 to #146,495.
FAQ
Kattenhorn surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kattenhorn?
Name Census estimates that about 131 living Americans carry the surname Kattenhorn. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,616,445 residents.
How common is Kattenhorn?
Kattenhorn ranks #146,495 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 114 people with the surname Kattenhorn. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (131), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Kattenhorn.
Has Kattenhorn become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kattenhorn went from 111 recorded bearers to 114. That is an increase of 3 (+2.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #148,347 to #146,495.
What does the Census say about the background of Kattenhorn?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kattenhorn, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.4%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (0.9%). 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 Kattenhorn in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.7% (108 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kattenhorn appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.7%), Hispanic (4.4%), American Indian/Alaska Native (0.9%). 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 Kattenhorn (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 Kattenhorn mean?
A surname derived from a place name referring to a cat's horn-shaped promontory. 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 Kattenhorn (0.04 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 people have the surname Kattenhorn?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.