2000
#10,159
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,916
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.08
Rare Last name
Kloss
A German and Jewish (Ashkenazic) occupational surname referring to a block or log maker, derived from Middle High German "kloz".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,210 Americans carry the last name Kloss. That puts it at #10,874 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.94 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 106,777 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kloss 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
3.2K
1 in 106,777
Census rank
#10,874
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,799 bearers of the surname Kloss in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.94 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10874th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kloss, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.3%) and Hispanic (2.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kloss
The surname Kloss originates from Germany and dates back to the late Middle Ages, around the 15th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old German word "klos," which referred to a lump or ball, possibly indicating a physical attribute or occupation of the earliest bearers.
Initially, the name was concentrated in the regions of Bavaria and Saxony, where it appeared in various forms such as Klos, Closs, and Klosse. These variations likely arose due to regional dialects and scribal errors in record-keeping.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Augsburg Cathedral records of 1498, which mention a certain Hanns Kloss. Additionally, the Kloss family is mentioned in the tax records of the town of Schmalkalden in 1550.
The name Kloss has been associated with several notable figures throughout history. Johann Friedrich Kloss (1758-1823) was a German writer and journalist who played a significant role in the early German romantic movement. Erasmus Kloss (1826-1908) was a German-American educator and pioneer in the field of physical education.
Another prominent bearer of the name was Erich Kloss (1888-1944), a German Communist politician and resistance fighter against the Nazi regime. Tragically, he was executed in the Plötzensee Prison in Berlin for his involvement in the anti-fascist resistance.
In the arts, Vinzenz Kloss (1629-1688) was a renowned German painter and engraver from Augsburg, known for his religious works and architectural paintings. More recently, Karlie Kloss (born 1992) is an American model and entrepreneur who has gained international recognition in the fashion industry.
It is worth noting that while the name Kloss is primarily associated with Germany, it has also spread to other parts of Europe and beyond through migration patterns over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kloss
Among Census respondents with the surname Kloss, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.3%) and Hispanic (2.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Kloss 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 Kloss surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.9% · 2,628
- Two or more races2.3% · 64
- Hispanic or Latino2.1% · 60
- Black or African American0.9% · 25
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 18
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kloss
Kloss 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
#10,815
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,945
+29 bearers (+1.0%)
Per 100,000 1.00
Rank movement Down 656 places
2020
#10,874
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,799
-146 bearers (-5.0%)
Per 100,000 0.94
Rank movement Down 59 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,159 | 2,916 | 1.08 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,815 | 2,945 | 1.00 | +29 bearers (+1.0%) | Down 656 places |
| 2020 | #10,874 | 2,799 | 0.94 | -146 bearers (-5.0%) | Down 59 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 Kloss 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 | #10,815 | #10,874 | -0.5% |
| Count | 2,945 | 2,799 | -5.0% |
| Per 100K | 1.00 | 0.94 | -6.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kloss bearers went from 2,945 to 2,799 (-5.0% change). The surname moved down 59 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,815 to #10,874.
FAQ
Kloss surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kloss?
Name Census estimates that about 3,210 living Americans carry the surname Kloss. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 106,777 residents.
How common is Kloss?
Kloss ranks #10,874 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.94 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 2,799 people with the surname Kloss. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,210), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.94 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.94 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 Kloss.
Has Kloss become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kloss went from 2,945 recorded bearers to 2,799. That is a decrease of 146 (-5.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,815 to #10,874.
What does the Census say about the background of Kloss?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kloss, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.3%) and Hispanic (2.1%). 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 Kloss in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.9% (2,628 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kloss appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.9%), Two or More Races (2.3%), Hispanic (2.1%). 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 Kloss (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 Kloss mean?
A German and Jewish (Ashkenazic) occupational surname referring to a block or log maker, derived from Middle High German "kloz". 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 Kloss (0.94 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 Kloss?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.