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

Kidney, 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 Kidney surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Kidney in America

Kidney is the 21034th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Kidney surname appeared 1,250 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Kidney.

We can also compare 2010 data for Kidney 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 Kidney

The surname KIDNEY originated in England in the 13th century. It derived from the Old English word "cildne", meaning "child" or "young person". This name likely referred to the youth or young appearance of the original bearer.

The earliest recorded instance of the KIDNEY surname appears in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273, which lists a William Kildene from Oxfordshire. Similar spellings from this era include Kildeny, Kyldene, and Kyldney.

In the 14th century, the surname KIDNEY appears in various tax rolls and church records across southern England counties like Somerset, Devon, and Dorset. A notable early bearer was John Kildene, born around 1320 in Bridgwater, Somerset.

The KIDNEY name may have connections to certain place names like Kilndown in Kent or Kilnhurst in Yorkshire, though the direct link is unclear. By the 16th century, the spelling had largely standardized to the modern KIDNEY form.

Notable KIDNEY individuals throughout history include Richard Kidney (c.1540-1610), an English Protestant reformer and theologian. Thomas Kidney (1684-1754) was a British naval captain who served in the War of the Spanish Succession.

During the English Civil War, Captain John Kidney (1619-1676) fought for the Parliamentarian forces and was later appointed Governor of Hull. His descendant, James Kidney (1760-1845), became a wealthy industrialist in the West Midlands.

In the 19th century, the explorer and naturalist George Kidney (1823-1891) made significant contributions to the study of Australian flora and fauna. He published several works detailing his expeditions across the continent.

While not appearing in the Domesday Book, the KIDNEY surname has a long-recorded history in England dating back to medieval times. The name's origins likely stem from the Old English word for "child" or "youth".

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Kidney

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

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

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

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