2000
#14,890
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,823
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.68
Rare Last name
Kirschbaum
A German surname referring to someone living near a cherry tree.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,060 Americans carry the last name Kirschbaum. That puts it at #15,658 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.60 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 166,386 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kirschbaum 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
2.1K
1 in 166,386
Census rank
#15,658
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,796 bearers of the surname Kirschbaum in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.60 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 15658th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kirschbaum, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.3%) and Hispanic (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kirschbaum
The surname Kirschbaum is of German origin, deriving from the compound words "Kirsch" meaning cherry, and "Baum" meaning tree. The name likely originated in the 16th or 17th century as a topographic name for someone living near a cherry tree or an area known for its cherry orchards.
The earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in various German church records and municipal archives from the 17th century onwards. For example, a Hans Kirschbaum was recorded in the city of Nuremberg in 1643. Another early record shows a Johann Kirschbaum in the town of Rothenburg ob der Tauber in 1672.
Variations in spelling include Kirschbaume, Kirsbaum, and Kirschebaum, reflecting regional dialects and differences in pronunciation. The name may also have been influenced by the similar-sounding place name Kirchheim, meaning "church home" or "church village".
Notable individuals with the surname Kirschbaum include the German painter and etcher Carl Kirschbaum (1842-1919), known for his landscapes and architectural works. Another Kirschbaum of note was the German-American lawyer and politician Emil Kirschbaum (1845-1928), who served as a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly.
In the 19th century, the name can be found in records from various regions of Germany, such as the Rhineland, Bavaria, and Saxony. One example is the German composer and pianist Johann Kirschbaum (1810-1880), who was born in the town of Wörlitz, near Dessau.
Another prominent figure was the German-American businessman and philanthropist August Kirschbaum (1861-1938), who founded the Kirschbaum Company, a leading manufacturer of men's clothing in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
The surname Kirschbaum also appears in historical records from other German-speaking regions, such as Switzerland and Austria, indicating that the name had spread beyond its initial origins.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kirschbaum
Among Census respondents with the surname Kirschbaum, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.3%) and Hispanic (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Kirschbaum 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 Kirschbaum surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.4% · 1,696
- Two or more races2.3% · 41
- Hispanic or Latino1.8% · 33
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 15
- Black or African American0.4% · 8
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kirschbaum
Kirschbaum 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
#15,743
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,852
+29 bearers (+1.6%)
Per 100,000 0.63
Rank movement Down 853 places
2020
#15,658
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,796
-56 bearers (-3.0%)
Per 100,000 0.60
Rank movement Up 85 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #14,890 | 1,823 | 0.68 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #15,743 | 1,852 | 0.63 | +29 bearers (+1.6%) | Down 853 places |
| 2020 | #15,658 | 1,796 | 0.60 | -56 bearers (-3.0%) | Up 85 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 Kirschbaum 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 | #15,743 | #15,658 | 0.5% |
| Count | 1,852 | 1,796 | -3.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.63 | 0.60 | -4.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kirschbaum bearers went from 1,852 to 1,796 (-3.0% change). The surname moved up 85 positions in the national ranking, going from #15,743 to #15,658.
FAQ
Kirschbaum surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kirschbaum?
Name Census estimates that about 2,060 living Americans carry the surname Kirschbaum. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 166,386 residents.
How common is Kirschbaum?
Kirschbaum ranks #15,658 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.60 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 1,796 people with the surname Kirschbaum. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,060), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.6 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.60 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 Kirschbaum.
Has Kirschbaum become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kirschbaum went from 1,852 recorded bearers to 1,796. That is a decrease of 56 (-3.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #15,743 to #15,658.
What does the Census say about the background of Kirschbaum?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kirschbaum, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.3%) and Hispanic (1.8%). 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 Kirschbaum in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.4% (1,696 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kirschbaum appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.4%), Two or More Races (2.3%), Hispanic (1.8%). 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 Kirschbaum (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 Kirschbaum mean?
A German surname referring to someone living near a cherry tree. 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 Kirschbaum (0.60 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 have the last name Kirschbaum?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the surname Kirschbaum at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.