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

Kilman, 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 Kilman surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Kilman in America

Kilman is the 36048th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Kilman surname appeared 622 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 Kilman.

We can also compare 2010 data for Kilman 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 Kilman

The surname Kilman is believed to have originated in England during the medieval period. It is thought to be derived from the Old English words "cyl" or "cille," meaning a furnace or kiln, and "mann," meaning a man or worker. This suggests that the name may have initially been given to someone who worked with furnaces or kilns, perhaps as a potter or a baker.

The earliest recorded instances of the name Kilman can be traced back to the 13th century in various county records and tax rolls. One notable example is a reference to a John Kilman in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire from 1273. This document listed landowners and taxpayers in the region, indicating that the Kilman family had already established a presence in England by that time.

In the 14th century, the name appeared in the Cartulary of Bury St. Edmunds, a collection of charters and records from the Abbey of Bury St. Edmunds in Suffolk. This manuscript mentions a Robert Kilman who was involved in land transactions in the area during the 1340s.

As the name spread across England, variations in spelling emerged, includingKilman, Killman, and Kylman. These variations likely arose due to regional dialects and the inconsistent nature of record-keeping during that era.

One notable individual bearing this surname was Sir John Kilman (c. 1420-1489), a wealthy merchant and landowner from Gloucestershire. He served as the Sheriff of Gloucestershire in 1468 and played an influential role in local affairs.

Another prominent figure was William Kilman (c. 1540-1612), a clergyman and scholar from Lincolnshire. He attended the University of Cambridge and later became the Rector of Bolingbroke in his home county.

In the 17th century, the name appears in the parish records of St. Mary's Church in Bury St. Edmunds, where several Kilman families were recorded as residing in the town during the 1600s.

Moving into the 18th century, we find Thomas Kilman (1705-1782), a successful businessman from Yorkshire who made his fortune in the wool trade. He was known for his philanthropic contributions to his local community.

Lastly, in the 19th century, there was George Kilman (1832-1901), a renowned architect from Gloucestershire who designed several notable buildings in the region, including the Cheltenham Town Hall and the Tewkesbury Abbey Church.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Kilman

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

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!