2000
#3,023
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 11,001
First available Census row
Per 100,000 4.08
Uncommon Last name
Keck
Derived from a German nickname meaning "bold, daring, or lively," or referring to someone from Kecke, Germany.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 12,314 Americans carry the last name Keck. That puts it at #3,283 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.59 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 27,835 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Keck 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
12K
1 in 27,835
Census rank
#3,283
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
11K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 10,738 bearers of the surname Keck in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.59 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3283rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Keck, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.0%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Keck
The surname Keck is of German origin, derived from the Middle High German word "keck," meaning "bold" or "brave." The name can be traced back to the 13th century in the regions of Bavaria and Franconia in Germany.
The earliest recorded instances of the name date back to the 14th century, with mentions in various historical documents and records. One notable example is the appearance of the name in the Codex Manesse, a historic manuscript from the early 14th century containing a collection of Middle High German poetry.
In the 15th century, the name Keck can be found in the Nuremberg Hussiten Records, which documented the names of individuals involved in the Hussite Wars. This suggests that some individuals bearing the name may have participated in these conflicts.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Keck was Hans Keck (c. 1420-1492), a prominent German merchant and banker from Nuremberg. He played a significant role in the city's economic and political affairs during the 15th century.
Another notable figure was Johann Keck (1572-1619), a German mathematician and astronomer born in Nuremberg. He contributed to the development of logarithms and was a contemporary of Johannes Kepler.
In the 17th century, the name Keck appeared in various records related to German immigration to the American colonies. One such individual was Hans Keck (c. 1630-1695), a German immigrant who settled in Pennsylvania and became a prominent landowner and businessman.
The surname Keck can also be traced back to the village of Keckhausen, located in the German state of Hesse. This suggests that the name may have originated as a locative surname, referring to individuals who came from or lived in that particular area.
Other notable individuals with the surname Keck include Johann Friedrich Keck (1729-1789), a German composer and organist, and Friedrich Keck (1780-1849), a German landscape painter and engraver.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Keck
Among Census respondents with the surname Keck, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.0%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Keck 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 Keck surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.3% · 9,915
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 320
- Two or more races2.8% · 300
- Black or African American0.8% · 89
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 75
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 39
Timeline
Historical Census data for Keck
Keck 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
#3,227
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 11,186
+185 bearers (+1.7%)
Per 100,000 3.79
Rank movement Down 204 places
2020
#3,283
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 10,738
-448 bearers (-4.0%)
Per 100,000 3.59
Rank movement Down 56 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,023 | 11,001 | 4.08 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,227 | 11,186 | 3.79 | +185 bearers (+1.7%) | Down 204 places |
| 2020 | #3,283 | 10,738 | 3.59 | -448 bearers (-4.0%) | Down 56 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 Keck 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 | #3,227 | #3,283 | -1.7% |
| Count | 11,186 | 10,738 | -4.0% |
| Per 100K | 3.79 | 3.59 | -5.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Keck bearers went from 11,186 to 10,738 (-4.0% change). The surname moved down 56 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,227 to #3,283.
FAQ
Keck surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Keck?
Name Census estimates that about 12,314 living Americans carry the surname Keck. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 27,835 residents.
How common is Keck?
Keck ranks #3,283 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.59 per 100,000 residents, which is about 4 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 10,738 people with the surname Keck. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (12,314), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.59 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.59 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 4 of them to have the surname Keck.
Has Keck become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Keck went from 11,186 recorded bearers to 10,738. That is a decrease of 448 (-4.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,227 to #3,283.
What does the Census say about the background of Keck?
Among Census respondents with the surname Keck, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.0%) and Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Keck in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.3% (9,915 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Keck appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.3%), Hispanic (3.0%), Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Keck (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 Keck mean?
Derived from a German nickname meaning "bold, daring, or lively," or referring to someone from Kecke, Germany. 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 Keck (3.59 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 Keck?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.