2000
#10,757
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,722
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.01
Rare Last name
Kime
Derived from a place name meaning "royal manor" in Old English, or from the Old Norse word for "stump."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,953 Americans carry the last name Kime. That puts it at #11,653 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.86 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 116,070 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kime 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Kime with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.0K
1 in 116,070
Census rank
#11,653
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,575 bearers of the surname Kime in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.86 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11653rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kime, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.3%) and Hispanic (3.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kime
The surname Kime has its origins in England, with records of the name dating back to the late 13th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old English words "cyma" or "cymen," which referred to a newcomer or a visitor. This suggests that the name may have originally been used to identify someone who had recently arrived in a particular area or settlement.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Huntingdonshire, a medieval census document from 1273, where a person named Robert Kyme is mentioned. This document provides valuable insights into the distribution and prevalence of names during that time period.
In the 14th century, the surname Kime appeared in various forms, such as Kyme, Kyme, and Keyme, reflecting the variations in spelling that were common in those days. These variations were often influenced by local dialects and the individual scribe's interpretation.
The name Kime has also been associated with several place names in England, such as Kyme in Lincolnshire and Kyme Eau, a river in the same county. These place names may have contributed to the development and spread of the surname in the surrounding areas.
Prominent individuals who bore the surname Kime include:
1. Sir Philip Kyme (d. 1368), an English knight and landowner in Lincolnshire during the reign of Edward III.
2. John Kyme (c. 1380-1454), an English Member of Parliament who represented Lincolnshire in the House of Commons.
3. Thomas Kyme (c. 1420-1492), a English landowner and member of the gentry from Lincolnshire, known for his involvement in the Wars of the Roses.
4. Elizabeth Kyme (c. 1480-1548), an English noblewoman and heiress who inherited extensive estates in Lincolnshire.
5. William Kyme (c. 1520-1590), an English clergyman and academic who served as the President of Corpus Christi College, Oxford.
Throughout history, the surname Kime has been found in various records, such as parish registers, tax rolls, and legal documents, highlighting its presence across different regions of England over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kime
Among Census respondents with the surname Kime, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.3%) and Hispanic (3.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Kime 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 Kime surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.9% · 2,315
- Two or more races4.3% · 112
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 87
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 22
- Black or African American0.8% · 21
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 18
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kime
Kime 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
#10,453
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,076
+354 bearers (+13.0%)
Per 100,000 1.04
Rank movement Up 304 places
2020
#11,653
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,575
-501 bearers (-16.3%)
Per 100,000 0.86
Rank movement Down 1,200 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,757 | 2,722 | 1.01 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,453 | 3,076 | 1.04 | +354 bearers (+13.0%) | Up 304 places |
| 2020 | #11,653 | 2,575 | 0.86 | -501 bearers (-16.3%) | Down 1,200 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 Kime 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 | #10,453 | #11,653 | -11.5% |
| Count | 3,076 | 2,575 | -16.3% |
| Per 100K | 1.04 | 0.86 | -17.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kime bearers went from 3,076 to 2,575 (-16.3% change). The surname moved down 1,200 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,453 to #11,653.
FAQ
Kime surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kime?
Name Census estimates that about 2,953 living Americans carry the surname Kime. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 116,070 residents.
How common is Kime?
Kime ranks #11,653 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.86 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 2,575 people with the surname Kime. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,953), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.86 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.86 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 Kime.
Has Kime become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kime went from 3,076 recorded bearers to 2,575. That is a decrease of 501 (-16.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,453 to #11,653.
What does the Census say about the background of Kime?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kime, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.3%) and Hispanic (3.4%). 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 Kime in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.9% (2,315 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kime appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.9%), Two or More Races (4.3%), Hispanic (3.4%). 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 Kime (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 Kime mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "royal manor" in Old English, or from the Old Norse word for "stump." 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 Kime (0.86 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 Americans have the surname Kime?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.