2000
#5,796
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,464
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.03
Rare Last name
Koerner
From the German word "Körner," meaning a grain merchant or someone who works with grains or seeds.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,955 Americans carry the last name Koerner. That puts it at #6,301 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.74 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 57,557 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Koerner 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
6.0K
1 in 57,557
Census rank
#6,301
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,193 bearers of the surname Koerner in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.74 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6301st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Koerner, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (2.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Koerner
The surname Koerner is of German origin, originating from the region of Bavaria in southern Germany. The name is derived from the Old German word "korn," which means grain or corn, indicating that the earliest bearers of this name were likely farmers or merchants involved in the grain trade.
The earliest recorded instances of the Koerner surname can be traced back to the 13th century in various German regions. One of the earliest known references to the name is found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae Regiae, a collection of historical documents from Saxony, which mentions a Conradus Kornere in 1292.
In the 14th and 15th centuries, the name appeared in various forms, such as Korner, Körner, and Kornär, reflecting regional variations in spelling and pronunciation. During this period, the name was also associated with certain place names, such as Kornberg (meaning "grain hill") and Kornmarkt (meaning "grain market").
One of the earliest notable individuals with the Koerner surname was Hans Körner (1470-1546), a German painter and wood engraver from Nuremberg. His works include illustrations for several books published in the early 16th century, including the Nuremberg Chronicle.
Another prominent figure was Johann Gottfried Körner (1670-1731), a German jurist and legal scholar who served as the rector of the University of Leipzig. He is known for his contributions to the field of civil law and his writings on legal theory.
In the 19th century, the Koerner name gained further recognition with the birth of Karl Theodor Körner (1791-1813), a German poet and soldier. He is celebrated for his patriotic poems and writings, which became popular during the Napoleonic Wars and the struggle for German unification.
Another notable figure from this period was Gustav Koerner (1809-1896), a German-American lawyer, judge, and politician. He served as the Lieutenant Governor of Illinois and played a significant role in the anti-slavery movement in the United States.
In more recent times, the Koerner name has been associated with individuals such as Brendan Koerner (born 1976), an American journalist and author who has written extensively on technology and cultural topics.
Overall, the surname Koerner has a rich history rooted in German agricultural traditions, with various branches of the family contributing to diverse fields such as art, law, literature, and politics over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Koerner
Among Census respondents with the surname Koerner, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (2.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Koerner 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 Koerner surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.6% · 4,809
- Two or more races3.3% · 170
- Hispanic or Latino2.7% · 138
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 54
- Black or African American0.2% · 12
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Koerner
Koerner 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
#5,833
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,928
+464 bearers (+8.5%)
Per 100,000 2.01
Rank movement Down 37 places
2020
#6,301
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,193
-735 bearers (-12.4%)
Per 100,000 1.74
Rank movement Down 468 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,796 | 5,464 | 2.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,833 | 5,928 | 2.01 | +464 bearers (+8.5%) | Down 37 places |
| 2020 | #6,301 | 5,193 | 1.74 | -735 bearers (-12.4%) | Down 468 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 Koerner 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 | #5,833 | #6,301 | -8.0% |
| Count | 5,928 | 5,193 | -12.4% |
| Per 100K | 2.01 | 1.74 | -13.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Koerner bearers went from 5,928 to 5,193 (-12.4% change). The surname moved down 468 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,833 to #6,301.
FAQ
Koerner surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Koerner?
Name Census estimates that about 5,955 living Americans carry the surname Koerner. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 57,557 residents.
How common is Koerner?
Koerner ranks #6,301 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.74 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 5,193 people with the surname Koerner. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,955), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.74 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.74 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 Koerner.
Has Koerner become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Koerner went from 5,928 recorded bearers to 5,193. That is a decrease of 735 (-12.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,833 to #6,301.
What does the Census say about the background of Koerner?
Among Census respondents with the surname Koerner, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (2.7%). 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 Koerner in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.6% (4,809 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Koerner appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.6%), Two or More Races (3.3%), Hispanic (2.7%). 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 Koerner (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 Koerner mean?
From the German word "Körner," meaning a grain merchant or someone who works with grains or seeds. 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 Koerner (1.74 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 Koerner?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.