2000
#10,855
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,695
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.00
Rare Last name
Kinkade
A Scottish and Irish occupational surname referring to a maker of barrels or casks.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,113 Americans carry the last name Kinkade. That puts it at #11,156 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.91 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 110,104 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kinkade 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
3.1K
1 in 110,104
Census rank
#11,156
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,715 bearers of the surname Kinkade in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.91 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11156th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kinkade, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.3%) and Two or More Races (3.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kinkade
The surname Kinkade has its origins in Scotland, dating back to the medieval period. The name is believed to be derived from the Gaelic words "cing" meaning "head" and "caid" meaning "armored" or "helmeted." This suggests that the name may have originally referred to a person who wore a distinctive helmet or was a leader in battle.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Kinkade can be found in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which were a series of homage rolls recording those who swore allegiance to King Edward I of England following his conquest of parts of Scotland. The name is also mentioned in several Scottish charters and land records from the 14th and 15th centuries, often associated with landholdings in the regions of Ayrshire and Lanarkshire.
In the 16th century, the Kinkade family held lands in the parish of Dairy, Ayrshire, and there are records of a John Kinkade who was a prominent landowner in that area during the mid-1500s. Another notable figure was Robert Kinkade, who lived in the late 17th century and was a supporter of the Covenanter cause during the Scottish religious conflicts of that era.
One of the earliest known bearers of the Kinkade surname was Sir John Kinkade, a Scottish knight who fought alongside Robert the Bruce in the Wars of Scottish Independence in the early 14th century. He was awarded lands in Ayrshire for his service in battle.
During the 18th and 19th centuries, the Kinkade name became more widespread as families migrated from Scotland to various parts of the British Empire, including Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. Notable individuals from this period include:
1. Andrew Kinkade (1748-1828), a Scottish-born merchant who settled in Nova Scotia, Canada, and played a significant role in the colony's trade and economic development.
2. William Kinkade (1809-1891), a Scottish-born artist who emigrated to Australia and is known for his landscape paintings depicting the Australian bush.
3. John Kinkade (1826-1903), a Scottish-born explorer and surveyor who worked extensively in British Columbia, Canada, and helped map vast areas of the province's rugged terrain.
4. Margaret Kinkade (1857-1934), a Scottish-born educator and suffragist who advocated for women's rights and educational reform in New Zealand.
5. Thomas Kinkade (1958-2012), an American painter known as the "Painter of Light," famous for his idyllic and nostalgic depictions of rural and urban landscapes, though his ancestry can be traced back to Scotland.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kinkade
Among Census respondents with the surname Kinkade, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.3%) and Two or More Races (3.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Kinkade 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 Kinkade surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.2% · 2,422
- Hispanic or Latino4.3% · 118
- Two or more races3.9% · 105
- Black or African American1.1% · 31
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 20
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 19
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kinkade
Kinkade 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
#11,264
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,807
+112 bearers (+4.2%)
Per 100,000 0.95
Rank movement Down 409 places
2020
#11,156
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,715
-92 bearers (-3.3%)
Per 100,000 0.91
Rank movement Up 108 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,855 | 2,695 | 1.00 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,264 | 2,807 | 0.95 | +112 bearers (+4.2%) | Down 409 places |
| 2020 | #11,156 | 2,715 | 0.91 | -92 bearers (-3.3%) | Up 108 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 Kinkade 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 | #11,264 | #11,156 | 1.0% |
| Count | 2,807 | 2,715 | -3.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.95 | 0.91 | -4.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kinkade bearers went from 2,807 to 2,715 (-3.3% change). The surname moved up 108 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,264 to #11,156.
FAQ
Kinkade surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kinkade?
Name Census estimates that about 3,113 living Americans carry the surname Kinkade. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 110,104 residents.
How common is Kinkade?
Kinkade ranks #11,156 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.91 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 2,715 people with the surname Kinkade. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,113), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.91 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.91 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 Kinkade.
Has Kinkade become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kinkade went from 2,807 recorded bearers to 2,715. That is a decrease of 92 (-3.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #11,264 to #11,156.
What does the Census say about the background of Kinkade?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kinkade, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.3%) and Two or More Races (3.9%). 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 Kinkade in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.2% (2,422 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kinkade appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.2%), Hispanic (4.3%), Two or More Races (3.9%). 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 Kinkade (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 Kinkade mean?
A Scottish and Irish occupational surname referring to a maker of barrels or casks. 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 Kinkade (0.91 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 common is the surname Kinkade?
See how many people have the surname Kinkade on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.