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

Kempf, 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 Kempf surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Kempf in America

Kempf is the 5465th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Kempf surname appeared 6,364 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Kempf.

We can also compare 2010 data for Kempf 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 Kempf

The surname Kempf is of Germanic origin, with roots tracing back to the Old High German word "kampf," meaning "battle" or "combat." The name likely originated in the medieval period, possibly as a nickname for a brave or skilled warrior.

Kempf is predominantly found in regions of Germany, Switzerland, and Austria, particularly in areas where Alemannic German dialects were spoken. It is also found in other German-speaking areas of Europe, including parts of France and Luxembourg.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Kempf can be found in the Codex Traditionum Corbeiensium, a medieval manuscript from the 9th century, which includes a reference to a person named "Kempfo" in the year 836.

In the 12th century, a notable figure named Ulrich Kempf was a canon at the Cathedral of Würzburg in Germany. Another early bearer of the name was Heinrich Kempf, a German knight who participated in the Crusades and was mentioned in records from the 13th century.

During the Renaissance period, a renowned German mathematician and astronomer, Johannes Kempf (1516-1599), made significant contributions to the field of trigonometry and celestial mechanics.

In the 18th century, Johann Friedrich Kempf (1739-1810) was a German composer and organist who served as the court organist for the Prince-Bishopric of Bamberg.

One of the most famous bearers of the Kempf surname was the German-American pianist and teacher, Rudolf Kempf (1910-1976), who was widely acclaimed for his interpretations of the works of Beethoven and Brahms.

The name Kempf has also been associated with various place names in Germany, such as Kempfenbrunn, a town in Bavaria, and Kempfen, a municipality in Baden-Württemberg. These place names may have influenced the development and spread of the surname in different regions.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Kempf

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

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

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

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