2000
#7,054
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,373
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.62
Rare Last name
Kratz
A German and Jewish (Ashkenazic) occupational surname referring to a person who scratched or carded wool.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,782 Americans carry the last name Kratz. That puts it at #7,654 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.40 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 71,676 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kratz 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
4.8K
1 in 71,676
Census rank
#7,654
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,170 bearers of the surname Kratz in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.40 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7654th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kratz, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.6%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kratz
The surname Kratz originated in Germany during the medieval period, likely derived from the German word "Kratz," which means "claw" or "scratch." It is believed to have been initially used as a nickname for someone with a distinctive physical characteristic or occupation related to scratching or clawing.
The name Kratz first appeared in various historical records from the 13th and 14th centuries, including German municipal archives and church registers. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Heidelberg Codex from 1392, which mentions a certain "Henrich Kratz" from the city of Worms.
In the 15th century, the name Kratz was particularly prevalent in the regions of Hesse and Rhineland-Palatinate, where variations such as "Kratzsch," "Kratzer," and "Krätz" were also documented. Some notable individuals bearing this surname during this period include Johannes Kratz, a scholar and theologian from Erfurt who lived from 1455 to 1519, and Hans Kratz, a renowned goldsmith from Nuremberg who crafted intricate religious artifacts in the late 1400s.
As the Kratz family spread across Germany and neighboring regions, the name became associated with various place names, such as Kratzenburg and Kratzhausen. This further solidified the surname's geographic roots and contributed to its continued use over the centuries.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, several distinguished individuals carried the Kratz surname, including Johann Kratz, a respected jurist and legal scholar from Frankfurt who lived from 1535 to 1612, and Wilhelm Kratz, a celebrated painter from Cologne who was active in the early 1600s and renowned for his religious artworks.
In the 18th century, the name Kratz gained prominence in the fields of academia and literature. Notable figures include Friedrich Kratz, a renowned German philosopher and professor at the University of Halle, who lived from 1723 to 1798, and Johann Michael Kratz, a prolific writer and poet from Ansbach, who was born in 1747 and published numerous works during his lifetime.
As the Kratz family continued to spread across Europe and eventually to other parts of the world, the surname maintained its strong German heritage and became closely associated with the rich cultural and historical traditions of its birthplace.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kratz
Among Census respondents with the surname Kratz, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.6%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Kratz 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 Kratz surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.6% · 3,905
- Two or more races2.6% · 107
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 106
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 38
- Black or African American0.2% · 9
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kratz
Kratz 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
#6,490
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,231
+858 bearers (+19.6%)
Per 100,000 1.77
Rank movement Up 564 places
2020
#7,654
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,170
-1,061 bearers (-20.3%)
Per 100,000 1.40
Rank movement Down 1,164 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,054 | 4,373 | 1.62 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,490 | 5,231 | 1.77 | +858 bearers (+19.6%) | Up 564 places |
| 2020 | #7,654 | 4,170 | 1.40 | -1,061 bearers (-20.3%) | Down 1,164 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 Kratz 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 | #6,490 | #7,654 | -17.9% |
| Count | 5,231 | 4,170 | -20.3% |
| Per 100K | 1.77 | 1.40 | -21.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kratz bearers went from 5,231 to 4,170 (-20.3% change). The surname moved down 1,164 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,490 to #7,654.
FAQ
Kratz surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kratz?
Name Census estimates that about 4,782 living Americans carry the surname Kratz. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 71,676 residents.
How common is Kratz?
Kratz ranks #7,654 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.40 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 4,170 people with the surname Kratz. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,782), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.4 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.40 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Kratz.
Has Kratz become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kratz went from 5,231 recorded bearers to 4,170. That is a decrease of 1,061 (-20.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #6,490 to #7,654.
What does the Census say about the background of Kratz?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kratz, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.6%) and Hispanic (2.5%). 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 Kratz in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.6% (3,905 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kratz appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.6%), Two or More Races (2.6%), Hispanic (2.5%). 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 Kratz (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 Kratz mean?
A German and Jewish (Ashkenazic) occupational surname referring to a person who scratched or carded wool. 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 Kratz (1.40 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 have the surname Kratz?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.