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

Kraatz, 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 Kraatz surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Kraatz in America

Kraatz is the 24370th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Kraatz surname appeared 1,028 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Kraatz.

We can also compare 2010 data for Kraatz 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 Kraatz

The surname Kraatz is believed to have originated in Germany, though its precise roots are somewhat obscure. Some scholars trace it back to the Low German word "krat," which means "crate" or "basket," suggesting that the name may have initially referred to someone who worked as a basket maker or seller.

The earliest known recorded instance of the name Kraatz dates back to the late 15th century in the region of Pomerania, which spans parts of modern-day Germany and Poland. One of the earliest bearers of the name was Hans Kraatz, a merchant from the city of Stettin (now Szczecin, Poland), who is mentioned in local records from the year 1492.

In the 16th century, the name began to spread throughout northern Germany, particularly in the regions of Mecklenburg and Brandenburg. During this time, the name was sometimes spelled differently, such as "Kratz" or "Kraatz," reflecting regional variations in pronunciation and orthography.

One notable figure from this period was Johann Kraatz, a Lutheran theologian born in Rostock in 1535. He served as a pastor in several parishes and was known for his writings on Protestant doctrine.

As the centuries progressed, the Kraatz surname continued to appear across various parts of Germany, though it remained most concentrated in the northern regions. In the 18th century, a prominent bearer of the name was Friedrich Kraatz, a merchant and ship owner from the city of Lübeck, who lived from 1712 to 1789.

Another significant individual with the surname Kraatz was Gustav Kraatz, a German entomologist born in 1831. He made significant contributions to the study of beetles and authored numerous scientific works, including the seminal "Revision der Tenebrioniden der alten Welt" (Revision of the Tenebrionidae of the Old World).

Throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries, several other notable figures bore the name Kraatz, including the German painter Carl Kraatz (1828-1892), the philosopher and educator Wilhelm Kraatz (1870-1937), and the World War I military officer Hans Kraatz (1885-1949).

While the surname Kraatz has its roots firmly planted in German soil, it has since spread to other parts of the world through immigration and migration patterns, though its prevalence outside of Germany remains relatively limited.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Kraatz

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

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

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

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