2010
#147,253
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Kauffold
A German surname derived from the words "kaufen" (to buy) and "Feld" (field), suggesting a merchant or trader of agricultural products.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 128 Americans carry the last name Kauffold. That puts it at #147,954 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,677,768 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kauffold 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
128
1 in 2,677,768
Census rank
#147,954
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
112
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 112 bearers of the surname Kauffold in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 147954th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kauffold, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.5%) and Hispanic (3.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kauffold
The surname Kauffold is believed to have originated in Germany, with its earliest recorded use dating back to the 16th century. It is derived from the German words "kaufen" meaning "to buy" and "Feld" meaning "field". This suggests that the name may have been originally associated with individuals who were involved in the buying or selling of land or agricultural products.
One of the earliest known references to the name Kauffold can be found in the records of the city of Nuremberg, where a merchant named Hans Kauffold is mentioned in a document from the year 1562. This document details a business transaction involving the sale of a parcel of land.
Another early reference comes from the town of Bamberg, where a man named Jakob Kauffold is recorded as having served as a local magistrate in the late 16th century. This suggests that the Kauffold family had achieved a certain level of prominence and respectability within their community.
In the 17th century, the name Kauffold appears in various records from the regions of Bavaria and Saxony. During this time, variations in spelling such as "Kauffold", "Kauffolt", and "Kuffold" were common. This reflects the fluidity of surname spellings before standardization became more widespread.
One notable individual bearing the Kauffold name was Johann Kauffold, a renowned clockmaker and inventor who lived in the city of Augsburg in the late 17th century. His contributions to the field of timekeeping and mechanical engineering earned him widespread recognition during his lifetime.
Another prominent figure was Christoph Kauffold, a scholar and theologian who was born in Dresden in 1688. He authored several influential works on religious philosophy and served as a professor at the University of Leipzig until his death in 1742.
In the 18th century, the Kauffold name continued to be associated with various trades and professions. Records from the town of Erfurt mention a family of brewers named Kauffold who operated a successful business for several generations.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Kauffold in the United States comes from the late 18th century, when a man named Wilhelm Kauffold immigrated from Germany and settled in Pennsylvania. He is believed to have been one of the first members of the Kauffold family to establish roots in the New World.
Throughout the 19th century, the Kauffold surname can be found in various historical records and documents across Europe and North America. Notable individuals from this era include Friedrich Kauffold, a renowned pianist and composer from Leipzig who lived from 1811 to 1872, and Karl Kauffold, a German-American artist and illustrator who gained recognition for his depictions of life in the American West during the latter half of the 19th century.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kauffold
Among Census respondents with the surname Kauffold, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.5%) and Hispanic (3.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Kauffold 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 Kauffold surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.0% · 103
- Two or more races4.5% · 5
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kauffold
Kauffold appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#147,954
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
+0 bearers (+0.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 701 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #147,253 | 112 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #147,954 | 112 | 0.04 | +0 bearers (+0.0%) | Down 701 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 Kauffold 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 | #147,253 | #147,954 | -0.5% |
| Count | 112 | 112 | 0.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -6.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kauffold bearers went from 112 to 112 (+0.0% change). The surname moved down 701 positions in the national ranking, going from #147,253 to #147,954.
FAQ
Kauffold surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kauffold?
Name Census estimates that about 128 living Americans carry the surname Kauffold. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,677,768 residents.
How common is Kauffold?
Kauffold ranks #147,954 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 112 people with the surname Kauffold. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (128), 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 Kauffold.
Has Kauffold become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kauffold went from 112 recorded bearers to 112. That is an increase of 0 (+0.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #147,253 to #147,954.
What does the Census say about the background of Kauffold?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kauffold, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.5%) and Hispanic (3.6%). 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 Kauffold in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.0% (103 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kauffold appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.0%), Two or More Races (4.5%), Hispanic (3.6%). 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 Kauffold (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 Kauffold mean?
A German surname derived from the words "kaufen" (to buy) and "Feld" (field), suggesting a merchant or trader of agricultural products. 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 Kauffold (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 Kauffold?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.