2000
#100,194
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 167
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.06
Very Rare Last name
Kunitz
A Germanic surname derived from a place name or occupational term related to metalworking or mining.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 187 Americans carry the last name Kunitz. That puts it at #114,090 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.05 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,832,911 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kunitz 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
187
1 in 1,832,911
Census rank
#114,090
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
163
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 163 bearers of the surname Kunitz in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.05 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 114090th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kunitz, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.5%) and Hispanic (4.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kunitz
The surname Kunitz has its origins in Germany and dates back to the early 18th century. It is believed to be derived from the German word "Kunitz," which refers to a type of small freshwater fish known as the carp or the tench. This suggests that the name may have initially been an occupational surname associated with individuals who worked as fishermen or traded in these particular types of fish.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Kunitz surname can be found in the German church records of the town of Altenburg, located in the present-day state of Thuringia. The records from the year 1735 mention a Johann Kunitz, who was a resident of the town at that time.
In the late 18th century, the Kunitz surname appeared in various other regions of Germany, including Saxony and Brandenburg. During this period, the name was sometimes spelled with variations such as "Kunitz," "Künitz," or "Kunnitz."
Historically, the Kunitz surname has been associated with individuals from various walks of life, including craftsmen, merchants, and intellectuals. One notable figure bearing this name was Carl Gustav Kunitz, a German-born writer and translator who lived from 1798 to 1846. He was known for his translations of works by Lord Byron and other English poets.
Another significant individual with the Kunitz surname was Stanley Kunitz, an American poet and literary critic who was born in 1905 and passed away in 2006. He was a recipient of the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1959 and served as the United States Poet Laureate from 1974 to 1976.
In the 19th century, the Kunitz surname also appeared in other parts of Europe, including Poland and the Russian Empire. One notable bearer of the name was Jerzy Kunitz, a Polish-born writer and journalist who lived from 1849 to 1919 and was active in the Polish independence movement.
Other individuals of note who carried the Kunitz surname include Ernst Kunitz, a German-born mathematician and physicist who lived from 1799 to 1851, and Wilhelm Kunitz, a German politician and lawyer who served as a member of the Reichstag in the late 19th century.
While the Kunitz surname originated in Germany, it has since spread to various parts of the world, including North America, where it was likely brought by German immigrants in the 19th and early 20th centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kunitz
Among Census respondents with the surname Kunitz, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.5%) and Hispanic (4.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Kunitz 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 Kunitz surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.7% · 143
- Two or more races5.5% · 9
- Hispanic or Latino4.3% · 7
- Black or African American1.8% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kunitz
Kunitz 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
#106,570
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 167
+0 bearers (+0.0%)
Per 100,000 0.06
Rank movement Down 6,376 places
2020
#114,090
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 163
-4 bearers (-2.4%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Down 7,520 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #100,194 | 167 | 0.06 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #106,570 | 167 | 0.06 | +0 bearers (+0.0%) | Down 6,376 places |
| 2020 | #114,090 | 163 | 0.05 | -4 bearers (-2.4%) | Down 7,520 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 Kunitz 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 | #106,570 | #114,090 | -7.1% |
| Count | 167 | 163 | -2.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.06 | 0.05 | -9.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kunitz bearers went from 167 to 163 (-2.4% change). The surname moved down 7,520 positions in the national ranking, going from #106,570 to #114,090.
FAQ
Kunitz surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kunitz?
Name Census estimates that about 187 living Americans carry the surname Kunitz. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,832,911 residents.
How common is Kunitz?
Kunitz ranks #114,090 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.05 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 163 people with the surname Kunitz. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (187), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.05 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.05 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 Kunitz.
Has Kunitz become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kunitz went from 167 recorded bearers to 163. That is a decrease of 4 (-2.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #106,570 to #114,090.
What does the Census say about the background of Kunitz?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kunitz, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.5%) and Hispanic (4.3%). 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 Kunitz in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.7% (143 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kunitz appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.7%), Two or More Races (5.5%), Hispanic (4.3%). 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 Kunitz (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 Kunitz mean?
A Germanic surname derived from a place name or occupational term related to metalworking or mining. 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 Kunitz (0.05 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 Kunitz?
See how many people have the surname Kunitz on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.