2000
#11,696
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,457
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.91
Rare Last name
Kiker
Derived from the German occupational name "Kiker" or "Küker," referring to a barrelmaker or cooper.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,730 Americans carry the last name Kiker. That puts it at #12,446 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.80 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 125,551 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kiker 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
2.7K
1 in 125,551
Census rank
#12,446
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,381 bearers of the surname Kiker in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.80 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12446th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kiker, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.9%) and Hispanic (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kiker
The surname "Kiker" is of German origin, stemming from the Middle Low German word "kiker," which translates to "one who looks" or "gazer." This surname emerged during the late medieval period, primarily in the regions of northern Germany and the Low Countries.
The earliest recorded instances of the name can be traced back to the 14th century, where it appeared in various municipal and church records across cities like Hamburg, Bremen, and Lübeck. One notable mention is found in the "Bremisches Urkundenbuch" (Bremen Deed Book) from 1372, which refers to a certain "Hinrich Kiker" as a citizen of Bremen.
In the 15th century, the name Kiker began to spread further afield, with records showing individuals bearing this surname in areas like the Dutch province of Friesland and the German state of Mecklenburg. A significant figure from this era was Johann Kiker (c. 1420-1489), a merchant and alderman in the city of Wismar, who is mentioned in several contemporary chronicles.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the surname Kiker continued to be prevalent in northern Germany and the Netherlands. Notable bearers from this period include Hans Kiker (1532-1601), a respected baker and guild member in Lübeck, and Gerrit Kiker (1589-1652), a prosperous farmer and landowner in the Dutch village of Heerenveen.
As people migrated and settled in different regions, the surname underwent various spelling variations, such as Kiker, Kicker, Kicker, and Kickers. One noteworthy individual was Peter Kicker (1798-1879), a German-born farmer who immigrated to the United States in the 1840s and became a prominent figure in the agricultural community of Ohio.
Another significant bearer of the Kiker name was Johann Friedrich Kiker (1822-1901), a German-American engineer and inventor who held several patents for innovative machinery used in the textile industry. His contributions played a crucial role in the industrialization of textile manufacturing in the late 19th century.
Throughout history, the surname Kiker has been associated with individuals from various walks of life, including artisans, merchants, farmers, and professionals. While the name may have evolved in its spelling over time, its roots can be traced back to the Low German term "kiker," reflecting the occupational or descriptive origins common to many Germanic surnames.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kiker
Among Census respondents with the surname Kiker, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.9%) and Hispanic (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Kiker 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 Kiker surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.4% · 2,199
- Two or more races2.9% · 70
- Hispanic or Latino2.6% · 62
- Black or African American1.0% · 25
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 15
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kiker
Kiker 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
#10,082
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,197
+740 bearers (+30.1%)
Per 100,000 1.08
Rank movement Up 1,614 places
2020
#12,446
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,381
-816 bearers (-25.5%)
Per 100,000 0.80
Rank movement Down 2,364 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,696 | 2,457 | 0.91 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,082 | 3,197 | 1.08 | +740 bearers (+30.1%) | Up 1,614 places |
| 2020 | #12,446 | 2,381 | 0.80 | -816 bearers (-25.5%) | Down 2,364 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 Kiker 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 | #10,082 | #12,446 | -23.4% |
| Count | 3,197 | 2,381 | -25.5% |
| Per 100K | 1.08 | 0.80 | -26.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kiker bearers went from 3,197 to 2,381 (-25.5% change). The surname moved down 2,364 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,082 to #12,446.
FAQ
Kiker surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kiker?
Name Census estimates that about 2,730 living Americans carry the surname Kiker. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 125,551 residents.
How common is Kiker?
Kiker ranks #12,446 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.80 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 2,381 people with the surname Kiker. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,730), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.8 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.80 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 Kiker.
Has Kiker become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kiker went from 3,197 recorded bearers to 2,381. That is a decrease of 816 (-25.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,082 to #12,446.
What does the Census say about the background of Kiker?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kiker, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.9%) and Hispanic (2.6%). 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 Kiker in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.4% (2,199 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kiker appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.4%), Two or More Races (2.9%), Hispanic (2.6%). 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 Kiker (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 Kiker mean?
Derived from the German occupational name "Kiker" or "Küker," referring to a barrelmaker or cooper. 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 Kiker (0.80 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 share the surname Kiker?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.