2000
#3,005
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 11,040
First available Census row
Per 100,000 4.09
Uncommon Last name
Kong
A Chinese surname referring to an ancient state or kingdom, or a descendant of Confucius.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 17,766 Americans carry the last name Kong. That puts it at #2,293 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 5.18 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 19,293 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kong 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 Kong with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
18K
1 in 19,293
Census rank
#2,293
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
5.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
15K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 15,493 bearers of the surname Kong in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 5.18 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2293rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kong, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 88.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.8%) and White (3.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kong
The surname Kong originated in China, where it first appeared around the 6th century CE. The name is derived from the Chinese word "kong," meaning "vast" or "empty," and may have originally referred to someone who lived in a remote or sparsely populated area.
In ancient Chinese records, the earliest known mention of the surname Kong can be found in the Sui Dynasty (581-618 CE) text "Beitang Shuchao," which lists it among the noble families of the time. During the Tang Dynasty (618-907 CE), the Kong surname was particularly prominent in the regions of Henan and Shandong provinces.
One of the most famous historical figures with the Kong surname was Kong Qiu, better known as Confucius (551-479 BCE), the renowned Chinese philosopher and teacher whose ideas and writings had a profound influence on East Asian culture and thought. Another notable person was Kong Rong (153-208 CE), a prominent scholar and statesman during the Eastern Han Dynasty.
In the 13th century, the Mongolian leader Kublai Khan appointed a man named Kong Xuan as the governor of Xiangyang, a strategic city in what is now Hubei province. Kong Xuan's descendants continued to hold power in the region for several generations, contributing to the spread of the Kong surname.
During the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644 CE), the Kong surname was particularly prevalent in the provinces of Shandong, Henan, and Jiangsu. One notable figure from this period was Kong Qi (1562-1619), a renowned painter and calligrapher who served as an official in the Ming imperial court.
In the Qing Dynasty (1644-1912 CE), the Kong surname remained prominent in northern China. One notable individual was Kong Youde (1832-1890), a scholar and reformer who advocated for modernization and Western learning during the late Qing period.
Throughout history, the Kong surname has been associated with scholars, officials, and intellectuals in China, reflecting the Confucian values of education and public service that were deeply ingrained in Chinese culture.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kong
Among Census respondents with the surname Kong, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 88.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.8%) and White (3.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Kong 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 Kong surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander88.9% · 13,768
- Two or more races3.8% · 584
- White3.5% · 543
- Hispanic or Latino1.9% · 301
- Black or African American1.9% · 290
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.0% · 7
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kong
Kong 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
#2,551
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 14,165
+3,125 bearers (+28.3%)
Per 100,000 4.80
Rank movement Up 454 places
2020
#2,293
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 15,493
+1,328 bearers (+9.4%)
Per 100,000 5.18
Rank movement Up 258 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,005 | 11,040 | 4.09 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,551 | 14,165 | 4.80 | +3,125 bearers (+28.3%) | Up 454 places |
| 2020 | #2,293 | 15,493 | 5.18 | +1,328 bearers (+9.4%) | Up 258 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 Kong 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 | #2,551 | #2,293 | 10.1% |
| Count | 14,165 | 15,493 | 9.4% |
| Per 100K | 4.80 | 5.18 | 8.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kong bearers went from 14,165 to 15,493 (+9.4% change). The surname moved up 258 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,551 to #2,293.
FAQ
Kong surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kong?
Name Census estimates that about 17,766 living Americans carry the surname Kong. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 19,293 residents.
How common is Kong?
Kong ranks #2,293 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 5.18 per 100,000 residents, which is about 5 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 15,493 people with the surname Kong. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (17,766), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 5.18 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 5.18 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 5 of them to have the surname Kong.
Has Kong become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kong went from 14,165 recorded bearers to 15,493. That is an increase of 1,328 (+9.4%). In the national ranking it rose from #2,551 to #2,293.
What does the Census say about the background of Kong?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kong, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 88.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.8%) and White (3.5%). 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?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest self-reported group for the surname Kong in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.9% (13,768 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kong appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (88.9%), Two or More Races (3.8%), White (3.5%). 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 Kong (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 Kong mean?
A Chinese surname referring to an ancient state or kingdom, or a descendant of Confucius. 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 Kong (5.18 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 common is the surname Kong?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the last name Kong at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.