2000
#10,004
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,972
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.10
Rare Last name
Kepler
Derived from the German occupational surname meaning a maker of cloaks or robes.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,374 Americans carry the last name Kepler. That puts it at #10,427 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.98 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 101,587 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kepler 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
3.4K
1 in 101,587
Census rank
#10,427
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,942 bearers of the surname Kepler in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.98 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10427th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kepler, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.5%) and Hispanic (3.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kepler
The surname Kepler is of German origin, deriving from the German word "kepler," which means "small trader" or "huckster." This surname first appeared in the 13th century in the regions of Bavaria and Swabia in southern Germany.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Kepler can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus, a collection of medieval documents from the region of Württemberg, dated around 1295. The name is written as "Keppelaere," which is believed to be an older spelling variation.
In the 14th century, the surname Kepler appeared in several municipal records and tax rolls in the city of Nuremberg, indicating that individuals with this name were established residents of the city during that time.
One of the most notable historical figures bearing the surname Kepler is Johannes Kepler (1571-1630), the renowned German astronomer, mathematician, and key figure in the scientific revolution. His groundbreaking work on planetary motion and the laws of planetary motion, now known as Kepler's Laws, made significant contributions to the field of astronomy.
Another notable individual with the surname Kepler is Johann Kepler (1627-1696), a German theologian and philosopher who was the grandson of the famous astronomer. He played a significant role in the Counter-Reformation and was a prominent figure in the Lutheran Church.
In the 18th century, the surname Kepler can be found in church records from the town of Oettingen, located in the Bavarian region of Germany. One notable example is Johann Kepler (1715-1790), a German composer and organist who was active in the Baroque period.
The surname Kepler also has ties to the town of Weil der Stadt in the state of Baden-Württemberg. Here, the name appears in various historical documents, including birth and marriage records from the 16th and 17th centuries.
Another notable figure bearing the surname Kepler is Christian Kepler (1638-1711), a German Lutheran theologian and philosopher who taught at the University of Tübingen. He made significant contributions to the field of natural theology and was influential in the early Enlightenment period.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kepler
Among Census respondents with the surname Kepler, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.5%) and Hispanic (3.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Kepler 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 Kepler surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.5% · 2,663
- Two or more races3.5% · 104
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 100
- Black or African American1.0% · 30
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 28
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 17
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kepler
Kepler 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
#10,204
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,157
+185 bearers (+6.2%)
Per 100,000 1.07
Rank movement Down 200 places
2020
#10,427
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,942
-215 bearers (-6.8%)
Per 100,000 0.98
Rank movement Down 223 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,004 | 2,972 | 1.10 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,204 | 3,157 | 1.07 | +185 bearers (+6.2%) | Down 200 places |
| 2020 | #10,427 | 2,942 | 0.98 | -215 bearers (-6.8%) | Down 223 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 Kepler 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 | #10,204 | #10,427 | -2.2% |
| Count | 3,157 | 2,942 | -6.8% |
| Per 100K | 1.07 | 0.98 | -8.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kepler bearers went from 3,157 to 2,942 (-6.8% change). The surname moved down 223 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,204 to #10,427.
FAQ
Kepler surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kepler?
Name Census estimates that about 3,374 living Americans carry the surname Kepler. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 101,587 residents.
How common is Kepler?
Kepler ranks #10,427 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.98 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 2,942 people with the surname Kepler. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,374), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.98 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.98 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 Kepler.
Has Kepler become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kepler went from 3,157 recorded bearers to 2,942. That is a decrease of 215 (-6.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,204 to #10,427.
What does the Census say about the background of Kepler?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kepler, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.5%) and Hispanic (3.4%). 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 Kepler in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.5% (2,663 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kepler appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.5%), Two or More Races (3.5%), Hispanic (3.4%). 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 Kepler (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 Kepler mean?
Derived from the German occupational surname meaning a maker of cloaks or robes. 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 Kepler (0.98 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 have the last name Kepler?
See how many Americans have the surname Kepler on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.