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

Kott, 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 Kott surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Kott in America

Kott is the 16462nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Kott surname appeared 1,746 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 Kott.

We can also compare 2010 data for Kott 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 Kott

The surname KOTT is believed to have originated in Germany in the 13th century. It is derived from the Old German word "kot" or "kott," which referred to a small cottage or hut. This suggests that the name likely belonged to someone who lived in a modest dwelling or worked as a builder of such structures.

In the 1400s, records from the town of Augsburg mention a "Hans Kott," one of the earliest documented instances of the name. The surname also appears in various spellings, such as "Kotte" and "Kott," in medieval records from other German regions like Bavaria and Saxony.

One notable bearer of the name was Johann Kott, a Protestant reformer and theologian from Swabia, Germany, who lived from 1488 to 1546. He played a role in the early stages of the Protestant Reformation and worked alongside Martin Luther.

In the 16th century, the name KOTT appears in the records of several German noble families, suggesting that some branches of the family had risen to aristocratic status. One example is the Kott von Dornburg family, who held lands and titles in Thuringia.

As the name spread across Europe, variations emerged, such as "Kot" in Poland and "Kotte" in the Netherlands. In the 17th century, a Dutch merchant named Willem Kotte was involved in establishing trade routes between the Netherlands and the East Indies.

Another significant figure was Johann Friedrich Kott, a German philosopher and author who lived from 1718 to 1793. He wrote extensively on ethics and political theory and was influential in the Enlightenment movement.

While the name KOTT is most commonly associated with Germany, it has also been found in other parts of Europe, including Scandinavia and the British Isles. In the 18th century, a Swedish military officer named Carl Kott served in the Napoleonic Wars and was awarded the Pour le Mérite, a prestigious military decoration.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Kott

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

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 Kott 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 Kott 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 Kott was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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