2000
#12,107
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,362
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.88
Rare Last name
Kleiner
A German and Jewish surname indicating a person of small stature or a descendant of a short person.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,641 Americans carry the last name Kleiner. That puts it at #12,780 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.77 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 129,782 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kleiner 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
2.6K
1 in 129,782
Census rank
#12,780
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,303 bearers of the surname Kleiner in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.77 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12780th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kleiner, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (3.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kleiner
The surname Kleiner originated in Germany, tracing its roots back to the Middle Ages around the 12th century. The name is derived from the German word "klein," meaning small or little, and was likely a descriptive nickname initially given to someone of short stature or a child. It may have also been used to distinguish between two people with the same first name, with "Kleiner" referring to the smaller or younger of the two.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Kleiner can be found in the "Codex Traditionum Westfalicarum," a medieval manuscript from the Westphalia region of Germany, dating back to the 13th century. This document contains a reference to a person named "Conradus Kleiner," suggesting the name was in use during that time period.
In the 14th century, the name Kleiner appeared in various historical records across different regions of Germany, including the "Urkundenbuch der Stadt Hildesheim" (Charter Book of the City of Hildesheim) and the "Urkundenbuch der Stadt Braunschweig" (Charter Book of the City of Brunswick). These records indicate the spread of the name throughout northern and central Germany.
One notable individual bearing the surname Kleiner was Johann Kleiner, a German theologian and academic who lived from 1615 to 1667. He served as a professor of theology at the University of Leipzig and was known for his contributions to the field of Protestant theology.
Another significant figure was Johann Baptist Kleiner, a German composer and organist born in 1793. He was a prominent figure in the musical scene of Bavaria and composed numerous works for the church and the court.
In the 19th century, the name Kleiner was associated with the town of Kleinermering, located in the district of Ebersberg in Bavaria. The town's name is believed to have derived from the surname Kleiner, suggesting the presence of a family or individuals with that surname in the area.
Another notable bearer of the Kleiner surname was Robert Kleiner, a German artist and painter born in 1891. He was known for his landscape paintings and worked extensively in the Bavarian and Austrian Alps regions, capturing the beauty of the natural scenery.
Finally, Erich Kleiner, a German mathematician and computer scientist born in 1923, made significant contributions to the field of computational complexity theory and authored several influential books on the subject.
While the surname Kleiner is more commonly found in Germany, it has also spread to other parts of Europe and the world through migration and diaspora, maintaining its connection to its German origins and the meaning of "small" or "little."
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kleiner
Among Census respondents with the surname Kleiner, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (3.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Kleiner 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 Kleiner surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.7% · 2,111
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 81
- Two or more races3.5% · 80
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 17
- Black or African American0.5% · 11
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kleiner
Kleiner 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
#12,140
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,566
+204 bearers (+8.6%)
Per 100,000 0.87
Rank movement Down 33 places
2020
#12,780
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,303
-263 bearers (-10.2%)
Per 100,000 0.77
Rank movement Down 640 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,107 | 2,362 | 0.88 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,140 | 2,566 | 0.87 | +204 bearers (+8.6%) | Down 33 places |
| 2020 | #12,780 | 2,303 | 0.77 | -263 bearers (-10.2%) | Down 640 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 Kleiner 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 | #12,140 | #12,780 | -5.3% |
| Count | 2,566 | 2,303 | -10.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.87 | 0.77 | -11.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kleiner bearers went from 2,566 to 2,303 (-10.2% change). The surname moved down 640 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,140 to #12,780.
FAQ
Kleiner surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kleiner?
Name Census estimates that about 2,641 living Americans carry the surname Kleiner. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 129,782 residents.
How common is Kleiner?
Kleiner ranks #12,780 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.77 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 2,303 people with the surname Kleiner. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,641), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.77 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.77 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 Kleiner.
Has Kleiner become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kleiner went from 2,566 recorded bearers to 2,303. That is a decrease of 263 (-10.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #12,140 to #12,780.
What does the Census say about the background of Kleiner?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kleiner, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (3.5%). 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 Kleiner in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.7% (2,111 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kleiner appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.7%), Hispanic (3.5%), Two or More Races (3.5%). 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 Kleiner (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 Kleiner mean?
A German and Jewish surname indicating a person of small stature or a descendant of a short person. 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 Kleiner (0.77 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 Kleiner?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.