2000
#12,355
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,306
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.85
Rare Last name
Kemmerer
Derived from a German place name, likely referring to someone from the town of Kemmern in Bavaria.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,596 Americans carry the last name Kemmerer. That puts it at #12,967 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.76 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 132,032 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kemmerer 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
2.6K
1 in 132,032
Census rank
#12,967
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,264 bearers of the surname Kemmerer in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.76 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12967th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kemmerer, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (2.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kemmerer
The surname Kemmerer is of German origin, derived from the word "Kammer," which means "chamber" or "room." It is believed to have originated in the 12th or 13th century, likely referring to a person who worked in a chamber or room, perhaps as a chamberlain or a steward.
The earliest recorded instances of the name can be traced back to medieval Germany, where it appeared in various forms such as Kemmerer, Kemmrer, and Kemmrer. One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Hans Kemmerer, a merchant who lived in the city of Nuremberg in the late 15th century.
During the Middle Ages, the surname Kemmerer was often associated with the nobility and gentry. In the 16th century, a family of Kemmerers held significant landholdings in the region of Saxony, and one member, Johann Kemmerer (1512-1583), served as a advisor to the Elector of Saxony.
As the name spread across Germany, it also took on various regional variations. In the southern regions, such as Bavaria and Austria, the name was sometimes spelled as "Kämmerle" or "Kämmerlin," while in the northern regions, like Westphalia, it was often written as "Kemmerer" or "Kemmer."
One notable bearer of the name was Johann Kemmerer (1740-1825), a German-born American clockmaker and inventor who lived in Philadelphia. He is credited with developing one of the earliest clock-making factories in the United States and is considered a pioneer in the field of mass-produced clocks.
Another prominent figure was Karl Kemmerer (1850-1920), a German-American lawyer and politician who served as the 16th Mayor of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, from 1892 to 1894. He was also a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly and played a significant role in the development of Milwaukee's infrastructure and public services.
In the realm of literature, the surname is associated with Donald Kemmerer (1914-2005), an American author and poet who wrote several poetry collections and novels, including "The Belmonte Tragedy" and "The Life We Live."
The name Kemmerer has also been linked to several geographical locations, such as the town of Kemmerer, Wyoming, which was named after Mahlon Kemmerer, a businessman and rancher who played a crucial role in the development of the region's coal mining industry in the late 19th century.
While the surname Kemmerer has its roots in Germany, it has since spread to various parts of the world, including the United States, Canada, and other countries, thanks to emigration and population movements over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kemmerer
Among Census respondents with the surname Kemmerer, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (2.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Kemmerer 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 Kemmerer surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.1% · 2,130
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 64
- Two or more races2.1% · 47
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 16
- Black or African American0.3% · 7
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kemmerer
Kemmerer 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
#12,878
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,390
+84 bearers (+3.6%)
Per 100,000 0.81
Rank movement Down 523 places
2020
#12,967
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,264
-126 bearers (-5.3%)
Per 100,000 0.76
Rank movement Down 89 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,355 | 2,306 | 0.85 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,878 | 2,390 | 0.81 | +84 bearers (+3.6%) | Down 523 places |
| 2020 | #12,967 | 2,264 | 0.76 | -126 bearers (-5.3%) | Down 89 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 Kemmerer 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 | #12,878 | #12,967 | -0.7% |
| Count | 2,390 | 2,264 | -5.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.81 | 0.76 | -6.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kemmerer bearers went from 2,390 to 2,264 (-5.3% change). The surname moved down 89 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,878 to #12,967.
FAQ
Kemmerer surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kemmerer?
Name Census estimates that about 2,596 living Americans carry the surname Kemmerer. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 132,032 residents.
How common is Kemmerer?
Kemmerer ranks #12,967 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.76 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,264 people with the surname Kemmerer. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,596), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.76 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.76 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Kemmerer.
Has Kemmerer become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kemmerer went from 2,390 recorded bearers to 2,264. That is a decrease of 126 (-5.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #12,878 to #12,967.
What does the Census say about the background of Kemmerer?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kemmerer, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (2.1%). 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 Kemmerer in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.1% (2,130 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kemmerer appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.1%), Hispanic (2.8%), Two or More Races (2.1%). 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 Kemmerer (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 Kemmerer mean?
Derived from a German place name, likely referring to someone from the town of Kemmern in Bavaria. 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 Kemmerer (0.76 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 share the surname Kemmerer?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.