2000
#149,328
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 101
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Kunberger
From a place name derived from Old German elements meaning "pine" and "mountain".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 117 Americans carry the last name Kunberger. That puts it at #154,755 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,929,524 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kunberger 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
117
1 in 2,929,524
Census rank
#154,755
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
102
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 102 bearers of the surname Kunberger in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 154755th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kunberger, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.1%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (2.0%) and Black (1.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kunberger
The surname Kunberger is of German origin, arising in the late medieval period. It is thought to derive from the Old German words "kun" meaning "kin" or "family" and "berg" meaning "hill" or "mountain". This suggests the name may have originated as a locational surname, referring to a place where an ancestor lived near a notable hill or mountainous area.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in a 14th century manuscript from the town of Rothenburg ob der Tauber in Bavaria. Here, a "Johannes Kunberger" is listed as a landowner and minor nobleman in 1367. The spelling varies slightly as "Kunberger", "Kunbergar" and "Kunbergen" in different records from this era.
By the 16th century, the name had spread to other parts of southern Germany and Austria. Notable bearers include Martin Kunberger (1529-1605), a Lutheran theologian and reformer from Nuremberg, and Hans Kunberger (1550-1631), a master woodcarver from Oberammergau whose works adorned many churches in Bavaria.
Moving into the 17th and 18th centuries, records show Kunbergers living in areas like Stuttgart, Munich and Salzburg. Johann Kunberger (1639-1702) was a respected gunsmith and armorer in Stuttgart. His grandson, Matthias Kunberger (1682-1746), became a prosperous merchant trading in luxury goods across Europe.
As the name spread more widely in the 19th century, we find examples like Friedrich Kunberger (1823-1897), a pioneering educator who established several schools in Vienna. And Helene Kunberger (1858-1932) was a renowned Viennese opera singer who performed leading roles across the German-speaking world.
While not exhaustive, this overview traces the surname Kunberger from its origins as a locational name in medieval southern Germany, through its emergence among the professional classes and eventual wider dissemination over the centuries. At least five individuals of note bearing this distinctive surname are highlighted across different fields.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kunberger
Among Census respondents with the surname Kunberger, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.1%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (2.0%) and Black (1.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Kunberger 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 Kunberger surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White96.1% · 98
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.0% · 2
- Black or African American1.0% · 1
- Two or more races1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kunberger
Kunberger 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
#149,395
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
+9 bearers (+8.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 67 places
2020
#154,755
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
-8 bearers (-7.3%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 5,360 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #149,328 | 101 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #149,395 | 110 | 0.04 | +9 bearers (+8.9%) | Down 67 places |
| 2020 | #154,755 | 102 | 0.03 | -8 bearers (-7.3%) | Down 5,360 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 Kunberger 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 | #149,395 | #154,755 | -3.6% |
| Count | 110 | 102 | -7.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -14.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kunberger bearers went from 110 to 102 (-7.3% change). The surname moved down 5,360 positions in the national ranking, going from #149,395 to #154,755.
FAQ
Kunberger surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kunberger?
Name Census estimates that about 117 living Americans carry the surname Kunberger. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,929,524 residents.
How common is Kunberger?
Kunberger ranks #154,755 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 102 people with the surname Kunberger. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (117), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Kunberger.
Has Kunberger become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kunberger went from 110 recorded bearers to 102. That is a decrease of 8 (-7.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #149,395 to #154,755.
What does the Census say about the background of Kunberger?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kunberger, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.1%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (2.0%) and Black (1.0%). 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 Kunberger in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.1% (98 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kunberger appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (96.1%), Asian/Pacific Islander (2.0%), Black (1.0%). 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 Kunberger (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 Kunberger mean?
From a place name derived from Old German elements meaning "pine" and "mountain". 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 Kunberger (0.03 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 Kunberger?
You can see how many people have the surname Kunberger on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.