2000
#124,109
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 128
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Klen
A surname from the German word "klein" meaning small or little.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 124 Americans carry the last name Klen. That puts it at #150,935 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,764,148 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Klen 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
124
1 in 2,764,148
Census rank
#150,935
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
108
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 108 bearers of the surname Klen in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 150935th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Klen, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.8%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (4.6%) and Hispanic (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Klen
The surname KLEN originated in Germany, with records dating back to the late 15th century. It is believed to have derived from the Middle Low German word "klene," which means "small" or "little." This suggests that the name may have been a descriptive nickname initially given to someone of small stature or a younger member of a family.
One of the earliest documented references to the KLEN surname can be found in the town records of Lübeck, a city in northern Germany, from the year 1492. The entry lists a "Hans Klen" as a resident of the town. Other early records show variations in spelling, such as "Klene" and "Klehne," which further supports the connection to the Middle Low German word.
In the 16th century, the KLEN name appeared in various parts of Germany, including the regions of Saxony and Brandenburg. Notable individuals from this period include Johann Klen, a merchant from Leipzig who lived from 1540 to 1612, and Christian Klen, a Lutheran theologian and author from Brandenburg born in 1587.
As German families migrated to other parts of Europe and eventually to other continents, the KLEN surname spread to new regions. In the 18th century, records show the name appearing in the Netherlands, with a family of KLEN merchants based in Amsterdam.
One of the most notable individuals with the KLEN surname was Carl Gustav Klen, a Swedish-Finnish painter and artist born in 1778 in Turku, Finland. He is considered one of the leading figures in the Swedish-Finnish Golden Age of painting and is renowned for his portraits and landscape works.
Another significant figure was Friedrich Klen, a German-born American architect and engineer who lived from 1801 to 1867. He was instrumental in the design and construction of many important buildings and infrastructure projects in the United States, including the Brooklyn Navy Yard and the Croton Aqueduct in New York City.
While the KLEN surname may not be as common as some others, its history can be traced back several centuries, with roots in the German language and a notable presence across various regions and professions throughout Europe and North America.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Klen
Among Census respondents with the surname Klen, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.8%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (4.6%) and Hispanic (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Klen 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 Klen surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.8% · 97
- Asian and Pacific Islander4.6% · 5
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 3
- Two or more races1.9% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Klen
Klen 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
#152,628
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
-21 bearers (-16.4%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 28,519 places
2020
#150,935
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 108
+1 bearers (+0.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 1,693 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #124,109 | 128 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #152,628 | 107 | 0.04 | -21 bearers (-16.4%) | Down 28,519 places |
| 2020 | #150,935 | 108 | 0.04 | +1 bearers (+0.9%) | Up 1,693 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 Klen 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 | #152,628 | #150,935 | 1.1% |
| Count | 107 | 108 | 0.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -9.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Klen bearers went from 107 to 108 (+0.9% change). The surname moved up 1,693 positions in the national ranking, going from #152,628 to #150,935.
FAQ
Klen surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Klen?
Name Census estimates that about 124 living Americans carry the surname Klen. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,764,148 residents.
How common is Klen?
Klen ranks #150,935 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 108 people with the surname Klen. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (124), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Klen.
Has Klen become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Klen went from 107 recorded bearers to 108. That is an increase of 1 (+0.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #152,628 to #150,935.
What does the Census say about the background of Klen?
Among Census respondents with the surname Klen, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.8%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (4.6%) and Hispanic (2.8%). 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 Klen in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.8% (97 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Klen appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.8%), Asian/Pacific Islander (4.6%), Hispanic (2.8%). 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 Klen (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 Klen mean?
A surname from the German word "klein" meaning small or little. 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 Klen (0.04 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 Klen?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.