2000
#95,091
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 178
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.07
Very Rare Last name
Kour
A Hindi surname indicating noble or royal ancestry.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 526 Americans carry the last name Kour. That puts it at #49,502 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.15 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 651,624 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kour 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 Kour with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
526
1 in 651,624
Census rank
#49,502
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
459
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 459 bearers of the surname Kour in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.15 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 49502nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kour, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 89.8%. The next largest groups are White (6.3%) and Black (2.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kour
The surname KOUR finds its origins in the Indian subcontinent, specifically in the region of Punjab. It is derived from the ancient Sanskrit word "Kuru," which was the name of an ancient kingdom that existed during the Vedic period, around 1000-500 BCE. The Kurus were a prominent clan mentioned in various Hindu texts, including the epic Mahabharata.
KOUR is a variant spelling of the more common surname "KAUR," which is a title used by Sikh women and girls. It is derived from the Sanskrit word "Kaurava," which refers to the descendants of the Kuru clan. The use of KOUR as a surname can be traced back to the 16th century, when it was adopted by Sikh families to signify their religious and cultural identity.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname KOUR can be found in the "Hukumnamas," which were written orders issued by the Sikh Gurus. These manuscripts mention several individuals with the surname KOUR, including Mata Gujri Kour, the wife of Guru Tegh Bahadur, the ninth Sikh Guru, who lived in the 17th century.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the surname KOUR. One such person was Maharani Jind Kaur (1817-1863), who was a prominent ruler of the Sikh Empire and played a crucial role in the First Anglo-Sikh War. Another famous bearer of the name was Sardarni Harbans Kaur (1914-2001), a Sikh activist and one of the founding members of the Akali Dal political party.
Two other prominent individuals with the surname KOUR were Bibi Nanki Kour (1556-1618), the elder sister of Guru Arjan Dev, the fifth Sikh Guru, and Bhai Mani Singh Kour (1644-1737), a renowned Sikh scholar and warrior who played a significant role in the Sikh resistance against the Mughal Empire.
While the surname KOUR has its roots in the Sikh community, it has also been adopted by other religious and cultural groups in the Indian subcontinent, particularly in the regions of Punjab and Haryana. The name continues to be widely used and holds cultural significance for many families across the region.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kour
Among Census respondents with the surname Kour, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 89.8%. The next largest groups are White (6.3%) and Black (2.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Kour 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 Kour surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander89.8% · 412
- White6.3% · 29
- Black or African American2.0% · 9
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 4
- Hispanic or Latino0.7% · 3
- Two or more races0.4% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kour
Kour 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
#78,567
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 243
+65 bearers (+36.5%)
Per 100,000 0.08
Rank movement Up 16,524 places
2020
#49,502
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 459
+216 bearers (+88.9%)
Per 100,000 0.15
Rank movement Up 29,065 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #95,091 | 178 | 0.07 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #78,567 | 243 | 0.08 | +65 bearers (+36.5%) | Up 16,524 places |
| 2020 | #49,502 | 459 | 0.15 | +216 bearers (+88.9%) | Up 29,065 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 Kour 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 | #78,567 | #49,502 | 37.0% |
| Count | 243 | 459 | 88.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.08 | 0.15 | 92.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kour bearers went from 243 to 459 (+88.9% change). The surname moved up 29,065 positions in the national ranking, going from #78,567 to #49,502.
FAQ
Kour surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kour?
Name Census estimates that about 526 living Americans carry the surname Kour. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 651,624 residents.
How common is Kour?
Kour ranks #49,502 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.15 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 459 people with the surname Kour. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (526), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.15 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.15 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Kour.
Has Kour become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kour went from 243 recorded bearers to 459. That is an increase of 216 (+88.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #78,567 to #49,502.
What does the Census say about the background of Kour?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kour, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 89.8%. The next largest groups are White (6.3%) and Black (2.0%). 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 Kour in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.8% (412 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kour appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (89.8%), White (6.3%), Black (2.0%). 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 Kour (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 Kour mean?
A Hindi surname indicating noble or royal ancestry. 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 Kour (0.15 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 are called Kour?
If you just want to know how many Americans have the surname Kour, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.