2000
#5,164
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,232
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.31
Rare Last name
Kempf
A German occupational surname referring to a champion, athlete or fighter.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 7,330 Americans carry the last name Kempf. That puts it at #5,266 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.14 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 46,760 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kempf 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
7.3K
1 in 46,760
Census rank
#5,266
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
6.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 6,392 bearers of the surname Kempf in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.14 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5266th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kempf, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.8%) and Hispanic (2.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of 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.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kempf
Among Census respondents with the surname Kempf, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.8%) and Hispanic (2.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Kempf 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 Kempf surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.3% · 5,962
- Two or more races2.8% · 176
- Hispanic or Latino2.3% · 147
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 66
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 22
- Black or African American0.3% · 19
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kempf
Kempf 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
#5,465
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,364
+132 bearers (+2.1%)
Per 100,000 2.16
Rank movement Down 301 places
2020
#5,266
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,392
+28 bearers (+0.4%)
Per 100,000 2.14
Rank movement Up 199 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,164 | 6,232 | 2.31 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,465 | 6,364 | 2.16 | +132 bearers (+2.1%) | Down 301 places |
| 2020 | #5,266 | 6,392 | 2.14 | +28 bearers (+0.4%) | Up 199 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 Kempf 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 | #5,465 | #5,266 | 3.6% |
| Count | 6,364 | 6,392 | 0.4% |
| Per 100K | 2.16 | 2.14 | -1.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kempf bearers went from 6,364 to 6,392 (+0.4% change). The surname moved up 199 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,465 to #5,266.
FAQ
Kempf surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kempf?
Name Census estimates that about 7,330 living Americans carry the surname Kempf. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 46,760 residents.
How common is Kempf?
Kempf ranks #5,266 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.14 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 6,392 people with the surname Kempf. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (7,330), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.14 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.14 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Kempf.
Has Kempf become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kempf went from 6,364 recorded bearers to 6,392. That is an increase of 28 (+0.4%). In the national ranking it rose from #5,465 to #5,266.
What does the Census say about the background of Kempf?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kempf, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.8%) and Hispanic (2.3%). 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 Kempf in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.3% (5,962 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kempf appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.3%), Two or More Races (2.8%), Hispanic (2.3%). 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 Kempf (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 Kempf mean?
A German occupational surname referring to a champion, athlete or fighter. 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 Kempf (2.14 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 are called Kempf?
Find out how common the surname Kempf is on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.