2000
#127,948
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 123
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Kunerth
A German surname derived from a place name or location.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 125 Americans carry the last name Kunerth. 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 Kunerth 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 Kunerth 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 Kunerth, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kunerth
The surname Kunerth has its origins in Germany, tracing back to the medieval period around the 12th or 13th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old German word "kuner," which meant "brave" or "bold." This suggests that the name was originally a descriptive nickname given to someone who displayed courage or bravery.
One of the earliest known records of the Kunerth surname can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae Regiae, a collection of historical documents from Saxony, Germany, dating back to the 13th century. The name is mentioned in an entry from the year 1274, referring to a person named "Conradus Kunerth."
During the 14th century, the name appeared in various other historical records across different regions of Germany, including Bavaria and Swabia. One notable example is a reference to a certain "Hans Kunerth" in the municipal records of the city of Nuremberg in 1385.
As the name spread and evolved over time, it took on various spellings, such as Kuhnert, Kuhnrath, and Kuhnradt, reflecting regional variations in pronunciation and orthography. Some of these variants may have been influenced by the German word "kuhn," meaning "bold" or "daring," further reinforcing the name's association with bravery.
While there are no known instances of the Kunerth surname appearing in major historical manuscripts like the Domesday Book, which focused primarily on England, the name has been associated with several notable individuals throughout history.
One of the earliest recorded figures with the surname Kunerth was Johann Kunerth (1508-1572), a German theologian and Lutheran reformer who served as a professor at the University of Wittenberg and contributed to the development of Protestant theology in the 16th century.
Another prominent figure was Friedrich Kunerth (1711-1788), a German painter and engraver known for his religious artwork and portraiture. His works can be found in various churches and collections across Germany and Austria.
In the 19th century, Karl Kunerth (1836-1917) was a German-born American brewer and businessman who founded the Kunerth Brewing Company in Philadelphia, which became one of the city's most successful breweries during that era.
More recently, Tripp Kunerth (born 1952) is an American journalist and author who has worked for the Orlando Sentinel newspaper for several decades, covering various topics such as crime, culture, and history.
While these are just a few examples, the Kunerth surname has been carried by individuals from various walks of life throughout history, reflecting its enduring presence and evolution across different regions and cultures.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kunerth
Among Census respondents with the surname Kunerth, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Kunerth 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 Kunerth surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.5% · 103
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 3
- Two or more races1.8% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kunerth
Kunerth 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
#123,064
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 140
+17 bearers (+13.8%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Up 4,884 places
2020
#150,205
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 109
-31 bearers (-22.1%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 27,141 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #127,948 | 123 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #123,064 | 140 | 0.05 | +17 bearers (+13.8%) | Up 4,884 places |
| 2020 | #150,205 | 109 | 0.04 | -31 bearers (-22.1%) | Down 27,141 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 Kunerth 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 | #123,064 | #150,205 | -22.1% |
| Count | 140 | 109 | -22.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.04 | -27.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kunerth bearers went from 140 to 109 (-22.1% change). The surname moved down 27,141 positions in the national ranking, going from #123,064 to #150,205.
FAQ
Kunerth surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kunerth?
Name Census estimates that about 125 living Americans carry the surname Kunerth. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,742,035 residents.
How common is Kunerth?
Kunerth 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.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 109 people with the surname Kunerth. 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.
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 Kunerth.
Has Kunerth become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kunerth went from 140 recorded bearers to 109. That is a decrease of 31 (-22.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #123,064 to #150,205.
What does the Census say about the background of Kunerth?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kunerth, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) 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.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Kunerth in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.5% (103 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kunerth appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.5%), Hispanic (2.8%), 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.
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 Kunerth (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 Kunerth mean?
A German surname derived from a place name or location. 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 Kunerth (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 common is the surname Kunerth?
For a quick modern take, check how many people are called Kunerth on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.