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

Kimball, 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 Kimball surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Kimball in America

Kimball is the 1544th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Kimball surname appeared 23,293 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 8 people would have the surname Kimball.

We can also compare 2010 data for Kimball 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 Kimball

The surname Kimball is of English origin, derived from the Old English words "cym" meaning a hill ridge or summit, and "ball" meaning a rounded hill or hillock. It is believed to have originated as a locational name, referring to someone who lived near a prominent hill or hillock.

The name can be traced back to the 13th century in England, with early recorded spellings including Kymball, Kymbald, and Kymbold. One of the earliest known bearers of the name was John Kymbold, who was mentioned in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire in 1275.

Kimball is also recorded in the famous Domesday Book of 1086, which was a survey of landowners in England commissioned by William the Conqueror. The name appears as a place name, "Chinguale" or "Chinghal", which is believed to be an early form of the surname.

In the 14th century, the name Kimball was found in various records across England, including the Hundred Rolls of Bedfordshire in 1279 and the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire in 1327. Notably, a Richard Kymball was recorded in the latter document.

One of the earliest known bearers of the Kimball surname was Sir William Kemball, who was a Member of Parliament for Gloucestershire in 1397. Another notable figure was Henry Kimball, a Puritan minister who was born in England in 1601 and later emigrated to Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1634.

Other historical figures with the surname Kimball include Richard Kimball (1723-1811), an American Revolutionary War soldier and early settler of New Hampshire; Harriet McEwen Kimball (1834-1917), an American author and lecturer; and Ingalls Kimball (1892-1938), an American composer and music educator.

Throughout history, the Kimball surname has also been associated with various place names in England, such as Kimball in Shropshire, Kimbolton in Herefordshire, and Kimblewick in Buckinghamshire, which are believed to have derived from the same Old English roots as the surname.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Kimball

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

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

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

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