2000
#139,757
National surname rank
First available Census row
A Croatian surname, possibly derived from a place name or occupation.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 125 Americans carry the last name Krisle. That puts it at #150,205 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,742,035 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Krisle 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
125
1 in 2,742,035
Census rank
#150,205
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
109
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 109 bearers of the surname Krisle in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 150205th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Krisle, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.8%) and Two or More Races (1.8%).
Origin
The surname Krisle is of German origin, emerging in the late 16th century in the regions of Bavaria and Saxony. It is believed to be derived from the old German word "Krisl," meaning a small, shriveled person or a person of short stature. Over time, the spelling evolved to Krisle.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Krisle can be found in the parish records of the town of Oberammergau, located in the Bavarian Alps, dating back to the late 1500s. This suggests that the name may have originated in this picturesque region, known for its woodcarving traditions and the famous Passion Play.
In the 17th century, the name Krisle appeared in the town records of Freiburg, a university town in southwestern Germany. This might indicate that members of the Krisle family were among the early scholars or students at the renowned University of Freiburg.
During the 18th century, a notable figure named Johann Krisle (1692-1776) was a master craftsman and woodcarver in the town of Oberammergau. His intricate works adorned many churches and homes in the region, reflecting the artistic traditions of the area.
Another prominent individual with the surname Krisle was Wilhelm Krisle (1804-1878), a successful merchant and trader from the city of Leipzig. His business dealings took him across Europe, and he was known for his savvy entrepreneurial skills.
In the 19th century, a family of Krisles settled in the town of Rothenburg ob der Tauber, a well-preserved medieval town in Bavaria. This branch of the Krisle family was involved in the local wine trade and owned several vineyards in the area.
As the centuries passed, the Krisle surname spread across Germany and into neighboring countries, with some variations in spelling, such as Krisle, Krisler, or Krissel. Despite its modest origins, the name has endured and continues to be carried by many families with roots in the German-speaking regions of Europe.
Demographics
Among Census respondents with the surname Krisle, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.8%) and Two or More Races (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Krisle 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 Krisle surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
Timeline
Krisle 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.
2000
National surname rank
First available Census row
2010
National surname rank
+8 bearers (+7.3%)
2020
National surname rank
-9 bearers (-7.6%)
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #139,757 | 110 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #141,140 | 118 | 0.04 | +8 bearers (+7.3%) | Down 1,383 places |
| 2020 | #150,205 | 109 | 0.04 | -9 bearers (-7.6%) | Down 9,065 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
How has the Krisle surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #141,140 | #150,205 | -6.4% |
| Count | 118 | 109 | -7.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -8.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Krisle bearers went from 118 to 109 (-7.6% change). The surname moved down 9,065 positions in the national ranking, going from #141,140 to #150,205.
FAQ
Name Census estimates that about 125 living Americans carry the surname Krisle. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,742,035 residents.
Krisle ranks #150,205 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.
The raw 2020 Census file counted 109 people with the surname Krisle. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (125), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
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 Krisle.
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Krisle went from 118 recorded bearers to 109. That is a decrease of 9 (-7.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #141,140 to #150,205.
Among Census respondents with the surname Krisle, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.8%) and Two or More Races (1.8%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Krisle in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.4% (104 people in the source table).
Krisle appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (95.4%), Hispanic (1.8%), Two or More Races (1.8%). 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.
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 Krisle (2000, 2010, 2020).
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.
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.
A Croatian surname, possibly derived from a place name or occupation. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
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.
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 Krisle (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.
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.