2000
#143,847
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 106
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Kiepe
A surname originating from the Platt German word for a container or basket.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 120 Americans carry the last name Kiepe. That puts it at #152,989 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,856,286 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kiepe 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
120
1 in 2,856,286
Census rank
#152,989
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
105
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 105 bearers of the surname Kiepe in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 152989th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kiepe, the largest self-reported group is White at 99.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (1.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kiepe
The surname Kiepe has its origins in Germany, where it first emerged in the 14th century. The name is derived from the Low German word "kipe," meaning a basket or container made from woven willow branches. This suggests the name may have originated as an occupational surname for someone who made or sold such baskets.
In its earliest recorded form, the name was spelled "Kippe" or "Kyppe." It is believed to have first appeared in northern German regions like Lower Saxony and Westphalia, where it was common for surnames to originate from occupations or trades.
One of the earliest known historical references to the Kiepe name can be found in the church records of the town of Minden, located in present-day North Rhine-Westphalia. These records mention a "Hermannus Kippe" in the year 1389.
By the 16th century, the name had spread to other parts of Germany, with records showing variations like "Kiepe," "Kyepe," and "Kype." In 1547, a "Johannes Kiepe" is documented in the town of Lübeck, in what is now the German state of Schleswig-Holstein.
One of the earliest notable individuals with the Kiepe surname was Johann Kiepe, a Lutheran pastor and theologian born in Braunschweig, Lower Saxony, in 1561. He studied at the University of Helmstedt and later served as the pastor of the Martini Church in Braunschweig until his death in 1625.
Another early figure was Hans Kiepe, a merchant and ship owner from Hamburg who lived from 1602 to 1671. He was involved in the lucrative trade between Hamburg and the Baltic region.
In the 18th century, a notable bearer of the name was Johann Georg Kiepe (1723-1796), a German painter and engraver from Hanover. He is best known for his etchings and engravings depicting landscape scenes and architectural subjects.
The 19th century saw the birth of Friedrich Kiepe (1821-1899), a German jurist and politician from Saxony-Anhalt. He served as a member of the Reichstag, the parliament of the German Empire, in the late 1800s.
Another significant figure was Wilhelm Kiepe (1856-1942), a German architect and urban planner who was active in the early 20th century. He is particularly known for his contributions to the development of the city of Düsseldorf, where he designed several notable buildings and urban planning projects.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kiepe
Among Census respondents with the surname Kiepe, the largest self-reported group is White at 99.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (1.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Kiepe 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 Kiepe surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White99.0% · 104
- Two or more races1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kiepe
Kiepe 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
#152,628
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
+1 bearers (+0.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 8,781 places
2020
#152,989
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 105
-2 bearers (-1.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 361 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #143,847 | 106 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #152,628 | 107 | 0.04 | +1 bearers (+0.9%) | Down 8,781 places |
| 2020 | #152,989 | 105 | 0.04 | -2 bearers (-1.9%) | Down 361 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 Kiepe 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 | #152,628 | #152,989 | -0.2% |
| Count | 107 | 105 | -1.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -12.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kiepe bearers went from 107 to 105 (-1.9% change). The surname moved down 361 positions in the national ranking, going from #152,628 to #152,989.
FAQ
Kiepe surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kiepe?
Name Census estimates that about 120 living Americans carry the surname Kiepe. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,856,286 residents.
How common is Kiepe?
Kiepe ranks #152,989 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 105 people with the surname Kiepe. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (120), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Kiepe.
Has Kiepe become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kiepe went from 107 recorded bearers to 105. That is a decrease of 2 (-1.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #152,628 to #152,989.
What does the Census say about the background of Kiepe?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kiepe, the largest self-reported group is White at 99.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (1.0%). 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 Kiepe in the 2020 Census, accounting for 99.0% (104 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kiepe appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (99.0%), Two or More Races (1.0%). 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 Kiepe (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 Kiepe mean?
A surname originating from the Platt German word for a container or basket. 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 Kiepe (0.04 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 surname Kiepe?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.