2000
#3,473
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,404
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.49
Uncommon Last name
Knoll
A topographic surname referring to someone who lived on or near a small, rounded hill.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 10,534 Americans carry the last name Knoll. That puts it at #3,765 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.07 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 32,538 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Knoll 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Knoll with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
11K
1 in 32,538
Census rank
#3,765
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
9.2K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 9,186 bearers of the surname Knoll in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.07 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3765th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Knoll, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.1%) and Two or More Races (2.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Knoll
The surname Knoll originated in Germany and is believed to have derived from the Old High German word "Knoll," which means a small round hill or a knoll. This surname is thought to have been initially used as a descriptive name for someone who lived near or on a knoll.
The name Knoll can be traced back to the 11th century in Germany, where it was first recorded in various medieval documents and records. One of the earliest known references to the name can be found in the Codex Traditionum Corbeiensium, a cartulary from the Corvey Abbey in Westphalia, dating back to the year 1089.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Knoll was Johannes Knoll, a German landowner and farmer who lived in the village of Knollendorf, near Erfurt, in the late 13th century. Another notable early bearer of the name was Heinz Knoll, a merchant and guild member in Nuremberg, who was mentioned in city records from the year 1384.
In the 15th century, the surname Knoll appeared in several other regions of Germany, including Bavaria and Saxony. In some areas, the name was also spelled as "Knol" or "Knohl," reflecting regional variations in pronunciation and spelling.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals with the surname Knoll. One of the most prominent was Martin Knoll (1592-1675), a German theologian and author who served as a professor at the University of Wittenberg and wrote several influential works on theology and church history.
Another famous bearer of the name was Johann Balthasar Knoll (1625-1699), a German baroque painter and engraver who was known for his religious scenes and portraits. His works can be found in several churches and museums throughout Germany and Austria.
In the 19th century, Johann Nepomuk Knoll (1825-1899) was a German-born priest and missionary who worked in the United States and Canada. He founded several parishes and is remembered for his efforts in promoting education and social welfare among Native American communities.
More recently, Hans Knoll (1914-1955) was a German-American furniture designer and entrepreneur who co-founded the renowned Knoll furniture company with his wife Florence Knoll. Their innovative designs and contributions to modern interior design have had a lasting impact on the industry.
Finally, one cannot overlook the German-American computer scientist and author Donald Knuth (born 1938), who is widely regarded as the "father of the analysis of algorithms." His influential works, such as "The Art of Computer Programming," have had a significant impact on the field of computer science.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Knoll
Among Census respondents with the surname Knoll, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.1%) and Two or More Races (2.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Knoll 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 Knoll surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.1% · 8,463
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 286
- Two or more races2.9% · 265
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 94
- Black or African American0.6% · 58
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 20
Timeline
Historical Census data for Knoll
Knoll 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
#3,697
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,608
+204 bearers (+2.2%)
Per 100,000 3.26
Rank movement Down 224 places
2020
#3,765
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,186
-422 bearers (-4.4%)
Per 100,000 3.07
Rank movement Down 68 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,473 | 9,404 | 3.49 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,697 | 9,608 | 3.26 | +204 bearers (+2.2%) | Down 224 places |
| 2020 | #3,765 | 9,186 | 3.07 | -422 bearers (-4.4%) | Down 68 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 Knoll 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 | #3,697 | #3,765 | -1.8% |
| Count | 9,608 | 9,186 | -4.4% |
| Per 100K | 3.26 | 3.07 | -5.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Knoll bearers went from 9,608 to 9,186 (-4.4% change). The surname moved down 68 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,697 to #3,765.
FAQ
Knoll surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Knoll?
Name Census estimates that about 10,534 living Americans carry the surname Knoll. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 32,538 residents.
How common is Knoll?
Knoll ranks #3,765 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.07 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 9,186 people with the surname Knoll. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (10,534), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.07 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.07 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Knoll.
Has Knoll become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Knoll went from 9,608 recorded bearers to 9,186. That is a decrease of 422 (-4.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,697 to #3,765.
What does the Census say about the background of Knoll?
Among Census respondents with the surname Knoll, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.1%) and Two or More Races (2.9%). 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 Knoll in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.1% (8,463 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Knoll appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.1%), Hispanic (3.1%), Two or More Races (2.9%). 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 Knoll (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 Knoll mean?
A topographic surname referring to someone who lived on or near a small, rounded hill. 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 Knoll (3.07 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 Knoll?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.