2000
#80,812
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 218
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.08
Very Rare Last name
Kremser
A surname derived from the German town of Krems, referring to someone from that area.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 272 Americans carry the last name Kremser. That puts it at #85,054 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.08 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,260,126 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kremser 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
272
1 in 1,260,126
Census rank
#85,054
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
237
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 237 bearers of the surname Kremser in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.08 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 85054th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kremser, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kremser
The surname KREMSER has its origins in the German and Austrian regions, with records dating back to the 15th century. It is believed to have derived from the place name "Krems," a town located along the Danube River in Lower Austria. The name itself can be traced back to the Bavarian dialect word "krem," meaning a merchant or trader.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the KREMSER surname can be found in the Nuremberg Chronicles, a famous illustrated world history book published in 1493. The book mentions a merchant named Hans KREMSER, who was involved in the trade of spices and textiles along the Danube trade routes.
In the 16th century, a notable figure bearing the KREMSER name was Johann KREMSER (1518-1592), a German humanist scholar and theologian. He was born in Nuremberg and later served as a professor of rhetoric and Greek at the University of Leipzig.
The KREMSER surname also has connections to the wine industry in Austria. In the 18th century, a family of wine merchants from the town of Krems became known as the KREMSERS, and their wine was exported throughout Europe under the KREMSER label.
Another prominent individual with the KREMSER surname was Franz KREMSER (1797-1859), an Austrian painter and lithographer who was renowned for his landscapes and architectural works. He was born in Vienna and studied at the Academy of Fine Arts.
In the 19th century, a notable figure was Jakob KREMSER (1822-1890), a German-American brewer who founded the KREMSER Brothers Brewery in Newark, New Jersey. The brewery was one of the largest in the state and played a significant role in the local economy.
Throughout history, the KREMSER surname has been associated with various occupations, including merchants, scholars, artists, and entrepreneurs, reflecting the diverse backgrounds and contributions of those who bore this name.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kremser
Among Census respondents with the surname Kremser, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Kremser 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 Kremser surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White96.6% · 229
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 6
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 1
- Two or more races0.4% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kremser
Kremser 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
#78,040
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 245
+27 bearers (+12.4%)
Per 100,000 0.08
Rank movement Up 2,772 places
2020
#85,054
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 237
-8 bearers (-3.3%)
Per 100,000 0.08
Rank movement Down 7,014 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #80,812 | 218 | 0.08 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #78,040 | 245 | 0.08 | +27 bearers (+12.4%) | Up 2,772 places |
| 2020 | #85,054 | 237 | 0.08 | -8 bearers (-3.3%) | Down 7,014 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 Kremser 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 | #78,040 | #85,054 | -9.0% |
| Count | 245 | 237 | -3.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.08 | 0.08 | -0.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kremser bearers went from 245 to 237 (-3.3% change). The surname moved down 7,014 positions in the national ranking, going from #78,040 to #85,054.
FAQ
Kremser surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kremser?
Name Census estimates that about 272 living Americans carry the surname Kremser. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,260,126 residents.
How common is Kremser?
Kremser ranks #85,054 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.08 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 237 people with the surname Kremser. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (272), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.08 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.08 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 Kremser.
Has Kremser become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kremser went from 245 recorded bearers to 237. That is a decrease of 8 (-3.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #78,040 to #85,054.
What does the Census say about the background of Kremser?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kremser, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.4%). 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 Kremser in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.6% (229 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kremser appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (96.6%), Hispanic (2.5%), Asian/Pacific Islander (0.4%). 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 Kremser (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 Kremser mean?
A surname derived from the German town of Krems, referring to someone from that area. 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 Kremser (0.08 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 Kremser?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the surname Kremser at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.