2000
#125,639
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 126
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Kulhavy
A surname of Czech origin meaning lame or limping.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 126 Americans carry the last name Kulhavy. That puts it at #149,446 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,720,273 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kulhavy 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
126
1 in 2,720,273
Census rank
#149,446
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
110
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 110 bearers of the surname Kulhavy in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 149446th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kulhavy, the largest self-reported group is White at 99.1%. The next largest groups are Black (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kulhavy
The surname Kulhavy has its origins in the Czech Republic, tracing back to the 13th century. It is derived from the Czech word "kulhavy," which means "lame" or "limping." This suggests that the name was likely originally a descriptive nickname given to someone who walked with a limp or had a physical disability affecting their gait.
The earliest known record of the Kulhavy surname appears in a village census from the region of Bohemia in the year 1265. The name was spelled "Kulhawy" at the time, reflecting the Old Czech spelling. Over the centuries, the spelling evolved to the modern form of "Kulhavy."
In the 15th century, a notable figure named Jan Kulhavy was a respected scholar and theologian at the University of Prague. He was born in 1412 and played a significant role in the Czech Reformation movement led by Jan Hus.
During the 16th century, the Kulhavy name can be found in several land ownership records in the town of Kutná Hora, a historic silver mining center in Bohemia. This suggests that members of the Kulhavy family may have been involved in the mining industry or owned property in the area.
In the late 18th century, a Czech mathematician and astronomer named Václav Kulhavy (1738-1798) gained recognition for his work in celestial mechanics and the calculation of planetary orbits. He was a member of the Royal Bohemian Society of Sciences and contributed significantly to the field of astronomy.
Another notable person with the Kulhavy surname was Jakub Kulhavy (1877-1958), a Czech architect and urban planner who designed several important buildings in Prague and other cities in the early 20th century. His most famous work is the Municipal House in Prague, a striking example of Art Nouveau architecture.
The Kulhavy surname has also been carried by several prominent athletes, including Jaroslav Kulhavy (born 1985), a Czech cross-country mountain biker who won the gold medal in the men's cross-country event at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.
While the Kulhavy name has its roots in the Czech Republic, it has since spread to other parts of the world through immigration and diaspora communities. However, the surname remains particularly prevalent in the Czech Republic and neighboring regions of Central Europe.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kulhavy
Among Census respondents with the surname Kulhavy, the largest self-reported group is White at 99.1%. The next largest groups are Black (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Kulhavy 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 Kulhavy surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White99.1% · 109
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kulhavy
Kulhavy 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
#144,141
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
-11 bearers (-8.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 18,502 places
2020
#149,446
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
-5 bearers (-4.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 5,305 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #125,639 | 126 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #144,141 | 115 | 0.04 | -11 bearers (-8.7%) | Down 18,502 places |
| 2020 | #149,446 | 110 | 0.04 | -5 bearers (-4.3%) | Down 5,305 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 Kulhavy 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 | #144,141 | #149,446 | -3.7% |
| Count | 115 | 110 | -4.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -8.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kulhavy bearers went from 115 to 110 (-4.3% change). The surname moved down 5,305 positions in the national ranking, going from #144,141 to #149,446.
FAQ
Kulhavy surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kulhavy?
Name Census estimates that about 126 living Americans carry the surname Kulhavy. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,720,273 residents.
How common is Kulhavy?
Kulhavy ranks #149,446 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 110 people with the surname Kulhavy. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (126), 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 Kulhavy.
Has Kulhavy become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kulhavy went from 115 recorded bearers to 110. That is a decrease of 5 (-4.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #144,141 to #149,446.
What does the Census say about the background of Kulhavy?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kulhavy, the largest self-reported group is White at 99.1%. The next largest groups are Black (0.9%). 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 Kulhavy in the 2020 Census, accounting for 99.1% (109 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kulhavy appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (99.1%), Black (0.9%). 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 Kulhavy (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 Kulhavy mean?
A surname of Czech origin meaning lame or limping. 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 Kulhavy (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 many Americans have the surname Kulhavy?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.