Find out how popular the last name Klink is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Klink.

Klink, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Klink surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Klink in America

Klink is the 8164th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Klink surname appeared 4,059 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Klink.

We can also compare 2010 data for Klink to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Klink

The surname KLINK originates from Germany, where it first appeared in the 15th century. It is believed to have derived from the Middle High German word "klinken," which means "to latch or fasten." The name may have been given to a locksmith or someone who worked with latches and hinges.

In the 16th century, the name KLINK can be found in records from the town of Klinkrath, located in the Rhineland region of Germany. This town's name is thought to have influenced the surname, as it contains the same root word.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname KLINK appears in the Kirchenbuch (church book) of Wertheim, Germany, in 1572, where a certain Hans Klink is mentioned.

In the 17th century, the KLINK name spread to other parts of Europe, including the Netherlands and Denmark. In the Netherlands, the name was sometimes spelled as "Klinck" or "Klinken."

A notable bearer of the KLINK surname was Johann Klink (1635-1704), a German composer and organist who served at the court of the Duke of Saxe-Coburg.

During the 18th century, the KLINK name continued to be documented in various German regions, such as Saxony and Brandenburg. In 1753, a Johann Friedrich Klink is recorded as being a merchant in the city of Leipzig.

In the 19th century, the KLINK surname made its way to the United States, where it was sometimes anglicized to "Klinck" or "Clink." One of the earliest recorded instances of the name in America is that of Johann Klink, who arrived in Pennsylvania from Germany in 1832.

Another notable bearer of the KLINK surname was Richard John Klink (1841-1923), a German-American artist and painter known for his landscapes and portraits.

As the 20th century dawned, the KLINK name could be found in various parts of the world, including Australia, where a certain William Klink (1876-1957) was a prominent businessman and philanthropist.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Klink

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Klink.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Klink was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Klink has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Klink was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Klink, please contact us.

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!