2000
#4,377
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,503
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.78
Rare Last name
Kraemer
A German occupational surname referring to a shopkeeper, retailer, or peddler of goods.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 8,740 Americans carry the last name Kraemer. That puts it at #4,525 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.55 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 39,217 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kraemer 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
8.7K
1 in 39,217
Census rank
#4,525
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
7.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 7,622 bearers of the surname Kraemer in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.55 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4525th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kraemer, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kraemer
The surname KRAEMER originates from Germany, with roots dating back to the Middle Ages. It is derived from the German word "Krämer," which means "merchant" or "trader." This occupational name was likely given to individuals involved in commerce or retail trade during that era.
The name KRAEMER is believed to have first emerged in the regions of southern and western Germany, particularly in areas like Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg, and the Rhineland. It is closely related to similar spellings such as Kramer, Kremer, and Cramer, which emerged from the same occupational source.
Historical records show that the name KRAEMER appeared in various medieval documents, including town chronicles and guild registers. One notable mention is found in the "Chronica Regia Coloniensis," a 14th-century chronicle from Cologne, which refers to a merchant named Hermann Kraemer.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name KRAEMER is found in the 13th century, with Henricus Cramer, a merchant from Lübeck, Germany, mentioned in a trade document from 1242. Another early example is Conrad Kramer, a prominent goldsmith and citizen of Nuremberg, who lived in the late 14th century.
Throughout history, several individuals with the surname KRAEMER have achieved notable status. These include:
1. Johann Kraemer (1553-1621), a German Lutheran theologian and professor at the University of Wittenberg.
2. Johann Valentin Kraemer (1670-1753), a German composer and organist known for his church music compositions.
3. Hendrick Kraemer (1888-1965), a Dutch theologian and Christian missionary, recognized for his work on Christian-Muslim relations.
4. Heinrich Kraemer (1904-1962), a German engineer and rocket scientist who worked on the V-2 rocket program during World War II.
5. Anna Kraemer (1923-2012), a German-American mathematician and computer scientist, known for her contributions to coding theory and information theory.
The name KRAEMER has also been associated with various place names, such as Kramersdorf, a town in Austria, and Kramerswijk, a neighborhood in Leiden, Netherlands, which likely derived their names from individuals with the surname KRAEMER who resided or held property in those areas.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kraemer
Among Census respondents with the surname Kraemer, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Kraemer 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 Kraemer surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.9% · 7,082
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 257
- Two or more races2.6% · 195
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 52
- Black or African American0.3% · 25
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 11
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kraemer
Kraemer 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
#4,592
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,726
+223 bearers (+3.0%)
Per 100,000 2.62
Rank movement Down 215 places
2020
#4,525
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,622
-104 bearers (-1.3%)
Per 100,000 2.55
Rank movement Up 67 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,377 | 7,503 | 2.78 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,592 | 7,726 | 2.62 | +223 bearers (+3.0%) | Down 215 places |
| 2020 | #4,525 | 7,622 | 2.55 | -104 bearers (-1.3%) | Up 67 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 Kraemer 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 | #4,592 | #4,525 | 1.5% |
| Count | 7,726 | 7,622 | -1.3% |
| Per 100K | 2.62 | 2.55 | -2.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kraemer bearers went from 7,726 to 7,622 (-1.3% change). The surname moved up 67 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,592 to #4,525.
FAQ
Kraemer surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kraemer?
Name Census estimates that about 8,740 living Americans carry the surname Kraemer. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 39,217 residents.
How common is Kraemer?
Kraemer ranks #4,525 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.55 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 7,622 people with the surname Kraemer. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (8,740), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.55 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.55 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Kraemer.
Has Kraemer become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kraemer went from 7,726 recorded bearers to 7,622. That is a decrease of 104 (-1.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #4,592 to #4,525.
What does the Census say about the background of Kraemer?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kraemer, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (2.6%). 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 Kraemer in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.9% (7,082 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kraemer appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.9%), Hispanic (3.4%), Two or More Races (2.6%). 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 Kraemer (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 Kraemer mean?
A German occupational surname referring to a shopkeeper, retailer, or peddler of goods. 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 Kraemer (2.55 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 Kraemer?
You can see how many people have the last name Kraemer on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.