2000
#3,771
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,630
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.20
Rare Last name
Kirsch
A German and Jewish occupational surname referring to a person who produced or sold cherry brandy.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 9,993 Americans carry the last name Kirsch. That puts it at #3,954 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.92 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 34,299 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kirsch 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 Kirsch with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
10.0K
1 in 34,299
Census rank
#3,954
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
8.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 8,714 bearers of the surname Kirsch in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.92 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3954th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kirsch, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.4%) and Two or More Races (2.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kirsch
The surname Kirsch has its origins in German-speaking regions of Europe, specifically in the area that is now modern-day Germany. It dates back to the 12th century and is derived from the Middle High German word "kirsche," which means "cherry." This suggests that the name may have originally been an occupational name for someone who grew or sold cherries, or perhaps lived near cherry orchards.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Kirsch can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Brandenburgensis, a collection of historical documents from the region of Brandenburg, dating back to the 13th century. In this document, a person named "Henricus dictus Kirsche" is mentioned in 1261.
Another early reference to the name Kirsch appears in the chronicles of the city of Strasbourg, where a certain "Johannes Kirsche" is recorded as a resident in 1349. This suggests that the name was also present in the Alsace region of France during the medieval period.
The name Kirsch has also been associated with various place names in Germany, such as Kirschgarten, which means "cherry garden," and Kirschenbach, which means "cherry brook." These place names may have influenced the development of the surname or vice versa.
One notable individual with the surname Kirsch was Johann Peter Kirsch (1861-1940), a German artist and painter known for his landscapes and genre scenes. Another was Karl Christian Kirsch (1904-1980), a German theologian and philosopher who worked on the concept of "existential guilt."
Other individuals bearing the surname Kirsch throughout history include:
1. Hans Kirsch (1520-1597), a German goldsmith and engraver.
2. Johann Adam Kirsch (1676-1748), a German painter and engraver.
3. Georg Friedrich Kirsch (1733-1805), a German mineralogist and geologist.
4. Johann Peter Kirsch (1807-1884), a German historian and archivist.
5. Paul Kirsch (1891-1984), a German mathematician and logician.
These examples illustrate the long history and diverse backgrounds of individuals with the surname Kirsch, which can be traced back to its origins as a name associated with cherry cultivation and trade in medieval Germany.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kirsch
Among Census respondents with the surname Kirsch, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.4%) and Two or More Races (2.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Kirsch 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 Kirsch surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.7% · 8,162
- Hispanic or Latino2.4% · 212
- Two or more races2.4% · 209
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 69
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 33
- Black or African American0.3% · 29
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kirsch
Kirsch 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
#4,050
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,764
+134 bearers (+1.6%)
Per 100,000 2.97
Rank movement Down 279 places
2020
#3,954
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,714
-50 bearers (-0.6%)
Per 100,000 2.92
Rank movement Up 96 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,771 | 8,630 | 3.20 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,050 | 8,764 | 2.97 | +134 bearers (+1.6%) | Down 279 places |
| 2020 | #3,954 | 8,714 | 2.92 | -50 bearers (-0.6%) | Up 96 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 Kirsch 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 | #4,050 | #3,954 | 2.4% |
| Count | 8,764 | 8,714 | -0.6% |
| Per 100K | 2.97 | 2.92 | -1.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kirsch bearers went from 8,764 to 8,714 (-0.6% change). The surname moved up 96 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,050 to #3,954.
FAQ
Kirsch surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kirsch?
Name Census estimates that about 9,993 living Americans carry the surname Kirsch. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 34,299 residents.
How common is Kirsch?
Kirsch ranks #3,954 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.92 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 8,714 people with the surname Kirsch. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (9,993), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.92 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.92 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Kirsch.
Has Kirsch become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kirsch went from 8,764 recorded bearers to 8,714. That is a decrease of 50 (-0.6%). In the national ranking it rose from #4,050 to #3,954.
What does the Census say about the background of Kirsch?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kirsch, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.4%) and Two or More Races (2.4%). 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 Kirsch in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.7% (8,162 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kirsch appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.7%), Hispanic (2.4%), Two or More Races (2.4%). 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 Kirsch (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 Kirsch mean?
A German and Jewish occupational surname referring to a person who produced or sold cherry brandy. 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 Kirsch (2.92 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 Kirsch?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.