2000
#3,487
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,375
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.48
Uncommon Last name
Kunkel
A German occupational surname referring to a maker or user of distaffs for spinning.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 10,474 Americans carry the last name Kunkel. That puts it at #3,797 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.06 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 32,724 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kunkel 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
10K
1 in 32,724
Census rank
#3,797
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
9.1K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 9,134 bearers of the surname Kunkel in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.06 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3797th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kunkel, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.1%) and Two or More Races (2.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kunkel
The surname Kunkel has its origins in Germany, where it first emerged in the Middle Ages. The name is derived from the Middle High German word "kunkel," which referred to a spindle or a distaff used in spinning thread. This suggests that the name may have initially been an occupational surname, given to someone who worked in the textile industry or was involved in spinning or weaving.
The earliest recorded instances of the name Kunkel can be traced back to the 13th and 14th centuries in various German regions, such as Bavaria and Saxony. In some historical documents, the name appeared with slight variations in spelling, including Kunckel, Kunckell, and Kunckel.
One notable historical reference to the name Kunkel can be found in the Weissenburger Stadtbuch, a medieval chronicle from the city of Weissenburg, which mentions a individual named Kunrad Kunkel in the year 1350.
Among the earliest recorded individuals bearing the surname Kunkel was Johannes Kunkel, a German alchemist and glassmaker who lived from 1630 to 1703. He is known for his contributions to the development of phosphorus and his work on glass production techniques.
Another prominent figure was Johann Philipp Kunkel, a German chemist and physician who lived from 1669 to 1749. He made significant contributions to the fields of chemistry and medicine, and is particularly renowned for his work on the preparation of antimony-based compounds.
In the 18th century, Johann Gottfried Kunkel (1720-1786) was a German mathematician and astronomer who worked as a professor at the University of Leipzig. He is notable for his contributions to spherical trigonometry and his observations of the transit of Venus in 1761.
In the realm of literature, Johann Christian Kunkel (1744-1807) was a German writer and journalist who published several novels and satirical works during the Enlightenment period.
Lastly, in the field of music, Johann Kunkel (1890-1958) was a German composer and conductor who worked in the early 20th century. He is known for his operas and orchestral works, which were influenced by the Romantic and Impressionist styles.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kunkel
Among Census respondents with the surname Kunkel, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.1%) and Two or More Races (2.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Kunkel 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 Kunkel surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.9% · 8,481
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 286
- Two or more races2.7% · 244
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 71
- Black or African American0.4% · 33
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 19
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kunkel
Kunkel 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
#3,736
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,488
+113 bearers (+1.2%)
Per 100,000 3.22
Rank movement Down 249 places
2020
#3,797
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,134
-354 bearers (-3.7%)
Per 100,000 3.06
Rank movement Down 61 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,487 | 9,375 | 3.48 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,736 | 9,488 | 3.22 | +113 bearers (+1.2%) | Down 249 places |
| 2020 | #3,797 | 9,134 | 3.06 | -354 bearers (-3.7%) | Down 61 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 Kunkel 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 | #3,736 | #3,797 | -1.6% |
| Count | 9,488 | 9,134 | -3.7% |
| Per 100K | 3.22 | 3.06 | -5.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kunkel bearers went from 9,488 to 9,134 (-3.7% change). The surname moved down 61 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,736 to #3,797.
FAQ
Kunkel surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kunkel?
Name Census estimates that about 10,474 living Americans carry the surname Kunkel. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 32,724 residents.
How common is Kunkel?
Kunkel ranks #3,797 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.06 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 9,134 people with the surname Kunkel. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (10,474), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.06 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.06 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Kunkel.
Has Kunkel become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kunkel went from 9,488 recorded bearers to 9,134. That is a decrease of 354 (-3.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,736 to #3,797.
What does the Census say about the background of Kunkel?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kunkel, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.1%) and Two or More Races (2.7%). 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 Kunkel in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.9% (8,481 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kunkel appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.9%), Hispanic (3.1%), Two or More Races (2.7%). 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 Kunkel (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 Kunkel mean?
A German occupational surname referring to a maker or user of distaffs for spinning. 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 Kunkel (3.06 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 Kunkel?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.