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

Kellman, 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 Kellman surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Kellman in America

Kellman is the 21686th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Kellman surname appeared 1,201 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 Kellman.

We can also compare 2010 data for Kellman 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 Kellman

The surname Kellman is believed to have originated in Germany in the late medieval period, deriving from the German words "Keller" meaning "cellar" and "Mann" meaning "man." This suggests the name may have initially referred to a person who worked in or managed a cellar, likely related to the storage of food or beverages.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Kellman can be found in the Bavarian town of Würzburg, where a merchant named Hans Kellman is mentioned in a local registry from the year 1482. Similar spellings such as Kellermann and Kellermann were also present in various parts of southern Germany during the 15th and 16th centuries.

In the 17th century, the name Kellman appears to have spread to other regions of Europe, including parts of what is now Poland and the Czech Republic. Records from this period indicate individuals with the surname Kellman residing in cities like Wrocław and Prague.

The earliest known person of note bearing the surname Kellman was Gottfried Kellman, a German theologian and philosopher born in 1671 in the town of Halle. Kellman published several treatises on religious doctrine and ethics, and served as a professor at the University of Halle until his death in 1745.

Another notable figure was Johann Kellman, a German composer and organist born in 1728 in Leipzig. Kellman's works included various sacred choral pieces and organ compositions, and he served as the organist at the Thomaskirche in Leipzig from 1758 until his passing in 1787.

In the 19th century, the Kellman surname gained prominence in the United States, likely due to German immigration. One notable American Kellman was Samuel Kellman, a businessman and philanthropist born in 1832 in Pennsylvania. Kellman amassed a fortune in the coal mining industry and was known for his charitable contributions to educational institutions.

The early 20th century saw the birth of Hans Kellman, a German artist and illustrator born in 1901 in Berlin. Kellman's works were exhibited in galleries across Europe, and he is particularly renowned for his intricate woodcut prints and etchings depicting scenes of urban life.

Finally, Gerhard Kellman, a German-born physicist and academic, made significant contributions to the field of theoretical chemistry during his career. Born in 1915 in Frankfurt, Kellman held professorships at several prestigious universities, including the Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research, before his death in 2008.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Kellman

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

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

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

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