2000
#4,535
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,183
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.66
Rare Last name
Kling
A German and Jewish (Ashkenazic) occupational surname referring to a maker of blades or swords.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 7,879 Americans carry the last name Kling. That puts it at #4,957 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.30 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 43,502 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kling 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
7.9K
1 in 43,502
Census rank
#4,957
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
6.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 6,871 bearers of the surname Kling in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.30 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4957th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kling, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.6%) and Two or More Races (3.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kling
The surname "KLING" is of German origin, derived from the Middle High German word "klinc," meaning a metal bar or latch. It likely originated as an occupational surname for a locksmith or metalworker in the 13th or 14th century.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in the Stadtbücher (city records) of Rothenburg ob der Tauber, Bavaria, in 1407, when a Cuntz Klinck is mentioned as a resident. The name is also found in the records of Nuremberg, with a Johann Klinck listed as a citizen in 1481.
In the 16th century, variations such as Klingk, Klincke, and Klinger emerged, reflecting regional dialects and spelling conventions. The name's association with metalworking trades is evident in the entry for Hans Klinck in the Zunftrollen (guild rolls) of Frankfurt am Main in 1568, where he is identified as a locksmith.
While not as prominent as some other German surnames, the Kling name has a long and well-documented history. Notable individuals bearing this name include Johann Adam Kling (1688-1758), a German theologian and author from Hesse; Friedrich Wilhelm Kling (1765-1842), a German lawyer and statesman who served as the first Minister of Justice for the Grand Duchy of Baden; and Karl Kling (1901-1983), a German racing driver who competed in the first Formula One World Championship in 1950.
In later centuries, the name spread beyond its initial heartland in southern Germany. For instance, Johann Gottlieb Kling (1778-1854) was a noted theologian and educator from Saxony, while Johann Friedrich Kling (1808-1886) was a prominent architect and builder from Württemberg, responsible for numerous churches and public buildings in that region.
Despite its German roots, the Kling surname can also be found in other parts of Europe, likely due to migration and intermarriage over the centuries. For example, the Swedish composer and organist Joakim Kling (1685-1736) hailed from Östergötland, and the Russian writer and journalist Boris Kling (1863-1928) was born in Saint Petersburg.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kling
Among Census respondents with the surname Kling, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.6%) and Two or More Races (3.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Kling 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 Kling surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.5% · 6,288
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 244
- Two or more races3.1% · 214
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 63
- Black or African American0.6% · 44
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 18
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kling
Kling 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
#4,598
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,713
+530 bearers (+7.4%)
Per 100,000 2.61
Rank movement Down 63 places
2020
#4,957
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,871
-842 bearers (-10.9%)
Per 100,000 2.30
Rank movement Down 359 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,535 | 7,183 | 2.66 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,598 | 7,713 | 2.61 | +530 bearers (+7.4%) | Down 63 places |
| 2020 | #4,957 | 6,871 | 2.30 | -842 bearers (-10.9%) | Down 359 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 Kling 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 | #4,598 | #4,957 | -7.8% |
| Count | 7,713 | 6,871 | -10.9% |
| Per 100K | 2.61 | 2.30 | -11.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kling bearers went from 7,713 to 6,871 (-10.9% change). The surname moved down 359 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,598 to #4,957.
FAQ
Kling surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kling?
Name Census estimates that about 7,879 living Americans carry the surname Kling. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 43,502 residents.
How common is Kling?
Kling ranks #4,957 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.30 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 6,871 people with the surname Kling. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (7,879), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.3 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.30 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Kling.
Has Kling become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kling went from 7,713 recorded bearers to 6,871. That is a decrease of 842 (-10.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #4,598 to #4,957.
What does the Census say about the background of Kling?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kling, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.6%) and Two or More Races (3.1%). 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 Kling in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.5% (6,288 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kling appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.5%), Hispanic (3.6%), Two or More Races (3.1%). 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 Kling (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 Kling mean?
A German and Jewish (Ashkenazic) occupational surname referring to a maker of blades or swords. 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 Kling (2.30 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 Kling?
Want to know how many people have the surname Kling? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.