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

Kaul, 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 Kaul surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Kaul in America

Kaul is the 8016th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Kaul surname appeared 4,128 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Kaul.

We can also compare 2010 data for Kaul 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 Kaul

The surname Kaul is of Indian origin, specifically from the northern regions of the Indian subcontinent, including present-day India and Pakistan. It is believed to have its roots in the Sanskrit language and can be traced back to ancient times.

The name Kaul is thought to be derived from the Sanskrit word "Kulina," which refers to a person of noble or distinguished lineage. It is closely associated with the Kashmiri Pandit community, a Hindu Brahmin caste from the Kashmir Valley. The Kauls were traditionally scholars, priests, and intellectuals known for their knowledge and expertise in various fields, including religion, philosophy, and astrology.

Historical records suggest that the Kaul surname was prominent in Kashmir as early as the 8th century CE. References to the Kaul family can be found in various ancient texts and manuscripts, such as the Rajatarangini, a historical chronicle of the Kashmir Valley written in the 12th century by Kalhana.

One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Kaul was Anandavardhana Kaul, a renowned Sanskrit scholar and literary theorist who lived in the 9th century CE. He is best known for his work "Dhvanyaloka," a seminal text on the theory of poetic suggestion (dhvani).

Another notable figure was Abhinava Gupta Kaul (c. 950 - 1016 CE), a celebrated Hindu philosopher, mystic, and scholar. He made significant contributions to the fields of aesthetics, philosophy, and tantric traditions. His works, such as the Tantraloka and the Parātrīśikā-vivaraṇa, are highly regarded in Hindu thought.

In the 16th century, Jonaraja Kaul (c. 1459 - 1532 CE) was a prominent Kashmiri historian and author of the Dvitīyā Rājataraṅginī, a continuation of Kalhana's Rajatarangini, chronicling the history of Kashmir from the 13th to the 15th century.

The Kaul surname is also associated with several place names in Kashmir, such as Kaul Kadal, a historic neighborhood in Srinagar, and Kaul Brahman, a village in the Baramulla district.

Throughout history, the Kaul surname has been carried by many accomplished individuals, including writers, poets, scholars, and artists. Prominent figures include Motilal Kaul (1894 - 1990), an Indian poet and writer who contributed significantly to Kashmiri literature, and Satish Kaul (1934 - 2018), a renowned Indian painter and sculptor known for his vibrant and expressive works.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Kaul

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

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 Kaul 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 Kaul 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 Kaul was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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