2010
#158,432
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.03
Very Rare Last name
Kraintz
A German surname derived from a regional name.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 120 Americans carry the last name Kraintz. That puts it at #152,989 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,856,286 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kraintz 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
120
1 in 2,856,286
Census rank
#152,989
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
105
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 105 bearers of the surname Kraintz in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 152989th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kraintz, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (19.0%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (5.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kraintz
The surname Kraintz originated in Germany during the late medieval period, likely deriving from the Germanic word krain, meaning "crane." It is believed to have been an occupational surname initially bestowed upon individuals who worked with or kept cranes, or perhaps lived near areas with a significant crane population.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Kraintz can be found in the Kirchenbücher, or church records, of the small village of Altdorf, near Nuremberg, dating back to the 15th century. These records mention a Johannes Kraintz, a farmer and landowner born around 1430.
In the 16th century, the Kraintz name appeared in various legal documents and property records throughout Bavaria and Saxony. Notable individuals from this era include Hans Kraintz, a merchant from Leipzig who traveled extensively through Europe, and Margarethe Kraintz, a respected midwife from the town of Rothenburg ob der Tauber, born in 1523.
As the name spread across Germany, it underwent slight variations in spelling, such as Kraintz, Krainz, Kreintz, and Kreinz. These variations were often influenced by regional dialects and the preferences of local scribes.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the Kraintz surname gained prominence in the regions of Thuringia and Silesia. One notable figure from this period was Johann Christoph Kraintz (1696-1768), a renowned theologian and author from Zittau, whose works on religious philosophy were widely studied in universities across Europe.
In the 19th century, the name Kraintz became associated with several distinguished academics and scientists. Among them was Friedrich Kraintz (1824-1892), a pioneering botanist from Dresden who made significant contributions to the study of plant taxonomy and authored numerous publications on the flora of Saxony.
Other notable individuals bearing the Kraintz surname include Ida Kraintz (1868-1944), a celebrated opera singer from Berlin who performed extensively across Europe and North America, and Karl Kraintz (1880-1952), a respected architect from Munich whose designs influenced the Bavarian Jugendstil movement.
While the Kraintz name has remained relatively uncommon throughout history, it has left its mark across various fields, from academia and the arts to commerce and religion, reflecting the diverse paths taken by those who have carried this surname over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kraintz
Among Census respondents with the surname Kraintz, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (19.0%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (5.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Kraintz 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 Kraintz surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White72.4% · 76
- Hispanic or Latino19.0% · 20
- Asian and Pacific Islander5.7% · 6
- Two or more races1.9% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kraintz
Kraintz appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#152,989
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 105
+3 bearers (+2.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 5,443 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #158,432 | 102 | 0.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #152,989 | 105 | 0.04 | +3 bearers (+2.9%) | Up 5,443 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 Kraintz 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 | #158,432 | #152,989 | 3.4% |
| Count | 102 | 105 | 2.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.04 | 17.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kraintz bearers went from 102 to 105 (+2.9% change). The surname moved up 5,443 positions in the national ranking, going from #158,432 to #152,989.
FAQ
Kraintz surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kraintz?
Name Census estimates that about 120 living Americans carry the surname Kraintz. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,856,286 residents.
How common is Kraintz?
Kraintz ranks #152,989 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 105 people with the surname Kraintz. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (120), 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 Kraintz.
Has Kraintz become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kraintz went from 102 recorded bearers to 105. That is an increase of 3 (+2.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #158,432 to #152,989.
What does the Census say about the background of Kraintz?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kraintz, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (19.0%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (5.7%). 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 Kraintz in the 2020 Census, accounting for 72.4% (76 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kraintz appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (72.4%), Hispanic (19.0%), Asian/Pacific Islander (5.7%). 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 Kraintz (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 Kraintz mean?
A German surname derived from a regional name. 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 Kraintz (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 Kraintz?
If you just want to know how many people have the last name Kraintz, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.