2000
#131,366
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 119
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Krain
An ethnic or locational surname derived from the region of Carniola (Krain), Slovenia.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 134 Americans carry the last name Krain. That puts it at #144,270 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,557,868 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Krain 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
134
1 in 2,557,868
Census rank
#144,270
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
117
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 117 bearers of the surname Krain in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 144270th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Krain, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.0%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Krain
The surname Krain originated in Germany, with the earliest records dating back to the 13th century. It is believed to have derived from the German word "Krain," which referred to the historical region of Carniola, now part of modern-day Slovenia. This region was once part of the Holy Roman Empire and had a significant German-speaking population.
During the Middle Ages, the name Krain was commonly found in various historical documents related to the Carniola region. One notable example is the presence of the name in the "Dewin's Codex," a 14th-century manuscript that recorded legal proceedings and land transactions in the area.
The earliest recorded instance of the surname Krain can be traced back to Johann Krain, born around 1275 in the town of Laibach (now Ljubljana, Slovenia). He was a prominent merchant and landowner in the region. Another notable figure was Ulrich Krain, a 14th-century knight who served in the court of Duke Albert II of Austria.
In the 16th century, the name Krain was also found in the records of the Principality of Brunswick-Lüneburg (now part of Germany), suggesting that some individuals bearing this surname had migrated from the Carniola region to other parts of the Holy Roman Empire.
One of the most famous individuals with the surname Krain was Johann Georg Krain (1633-1703), a German composer and organist who was highly regarded during the Baroque period. He served as the court organist in Coburg, Germany, and his works were widely performed and published across Europe.
Another notable figure was Friedrich Krain (1777-1855), a German philosopher and writer who was a proponent of idealism and a contemporary of Hegel. His works, such as "The Essence of Philosophy" (1819), explored the nature of consciousness and the relationship between the mind and reality.
In the 19th century, the surname Krain was also found in the records of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, particularly in the regions of modern-day Austria and Slovenia. One example is Karl Krain (1835-1912), an Austrian politician and lawyer who served as the Governor of the Duchy of Carniola from 1888 to 1892.
The name Krain has also been associated with various place names in the regions where it originated, such as Krainburg (now Kranj, Slovenia) and Krainfeld (now Kranjsko Polje, Slovenia), further reinforcing its historical ties to the Carniola region.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Krain
Among Census respondents with the surname Krain, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.0%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Krain 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 Krain surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.6% · 106
- Hispanic or Latino6.0% · 7
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.6% · 3
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Krain
Krain 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
#154,907
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 105
-14 bearers (-11.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 23,541 places
2020
#144,270
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
+12 bearers (+11.4%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 10,637 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #131,366 | 119 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #154,907 | 105 | 0.04 | -14 bearers (-11.8%) | Down 23,541 places |
| 2020 | #144,270 | 117 | 0.04 | +12 bearers (+11.4%) | Up 10,637 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 Krain 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 | #154,907 | #144,270 | 6.9% |
| Count | 105 | 117 | 11.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -2.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Krain bearers went from 105 to 117 (+11.4% change). The surname moved up 10,637 positions in the national ranking, going from #154,907 to #144,270.
FAQ
Krain surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Krain?
Name Census estimates that about 134 living Americans carry the surname Krain. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,557,868 residents.
How common is Krain?
Krain ranks #144,270 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 117 people with the surname Krain. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (134), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Krain.
Has Krain become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Krain went from 105 recorded bearers to 117. That is an increase of 12 (+11.4%). In the national ranking it rose from #154,907 to #144,270.
What does the Census say about the background of Krain?
Among Census respondents with the surname Krain, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.0%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (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 Krain in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.6% (106 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Krain appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.6%), Hispanic (6.0%), American Indian/Alaska Native (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 Krain (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 Krain mean?
An ethnic or locational surname derived from the region of Carniola (Krain), Slovenia. 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 Krain (0.04 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 Krain?
Want to know how common the surname Krain is? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.