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

Kerns, 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 Kerns surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Kerns in America

Kerns is the 2333rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Kerns surname appeared 15,614 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 5 people would have the surname Kerns.

We can also compare 2010 data for Kerns 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 Kerns

The surname Kerns is of English origin, derived from the Old English word 'cyrnel', meaning a small grain or kernel. It was likely an occupational surname given to someone who worked with grains or was a miller.

The earliest known record of the Kerns surname dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as 'Cyrnell' in Lincolnshire. This suggests that the name was already well-established in parts of England by the late 11th century.

In the 13th century, the name was recorded as 'Kernel' in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire. The spelling variations during this period also included 'Kernell', 'Kernelle', and 'Karnell'.

One of the earliest known bearers of the Kerns surname was John Kernes, who was listed in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire in 1327. Another early record is of William Kernes, mentioned in the Friary Rolls of Yorkshire in 1379.

The surname Kerns is also linked to several place names in England, such as Kernes Farm in Herefordshire and Kernes Bank in Gloucestershire. These place names likely derived from the same Old English root word as the surname.

Notable individuals with the surname Kerns throughout history include:

1. Sir Thomas Kernes (c. 1520 - 1594), an English soldier and Member of Parliament during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.

2. John Kerns (1648 - 1725), an English Quaker leader and writer who was imprisoned several times for his religious beliefs.

3. William Kerns (1721 - 1805), an American Revolutionary War soldier and one of the earliest settlers in what is now West Virginia.

4. Katharine Kerns (1888 - 1972), an American writer and journalist known for her novels set in the American West.

5. Michael Kerns (1942 - 2015), an American actor and playwright who co-founded the Utah Shakespeare Festival.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Kerns

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

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

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

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