2000
#9,054
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,320
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.23
Rare Last name
Kunze
A German occupational surname referring to a maker or seller of pelts and furs.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,718 Americans carry the last name Kunze. That puts it at #9,590 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.08 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 92,188 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kunze 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
3.7K
1 in 92,188
Census rank
#9,590
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,242 bearers of the surname Kunze in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.08 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9590th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kunze, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.6%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kunze
The surname Kunze originated in Germany, likely in the 13th or 14th century. It is derived from the medieval German personal name Kuonrat or Konrad, which means "bold counsel" or "brave advisor." The name Kunze is a diminutive form of this name, indicating a nickname or shortened version.
Kunze was initially found in various regions of Germany, particularly in the areas of Saxony, Silesia, and Brandenburg. The earliest recorded instances of the name can be traced back to the late Middle Ages, appearing in historical documents and records from these regions.
One notable early reference to the name Kunze is in the Codex Diplomaticus Brandenburgensis, a collection of historical documents from the Margraviate of Brandenburg, where the name is mentioned in the 14th century.
In the 15th century, a man named Hans Kunze was recorded as a citizen of Leipzig, a city in the German state of Saxony. Another historical figure with this surname was Johann Kunze, a Protestant theologian and university lecturer who lived in the 16th century (1518-1600).
During the 17th century, a prominent individual with the surname Kunze was Johann Gottlob Kunze (1688-1770), a German jurist and legal scholar from Saxony. He held influential positions in the judiciary and authored several works on legal theory and practice.
In the 18th century, the name Kunze was associated with Johann Christoph Kunze (1744-1807), a German botanist and naturalist from Saxony. He made significant contributions to the study of plants and their classification.
Another notable Kunze from the 19th century was Gustav Kunze (1793-1851), a German painter and lithographer known for his landscape and architectural works. He was born in Saxony and spent much of his career in Dresden.
As the surname Kunze evolved over time, various spelling variations emerged, such as Kunz, Kuntz, and Kunzmann, which may have been influenced by regional dialects or scribal errors in historical records.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kunze
Among Census respondents with the surname Kunze, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.6%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Kunze 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 Kunze surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.0% · 2,982
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 116
- Two or more races2.8% · 91
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 28
- Black or African American0.5% · 15
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kunze
Kunze 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
#9,686
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,351
+31 bearers (+0.9%)
Per 100,000 1.14
Rank movement Down 632 places
2020
#9,590
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,242
-109 bearers (-3.3%)
Per 100,000 1.08
Rank movement Up 96 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,054 | 3,320 | 1.23 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #9,686 | 3,351 | 1.14 | +31 bearers (+0.9%) | Down 632 places |
| 2020 | #9,590 | 3,242 | 1.08 | -109 bearers (-3.3%) | Up 96 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 Kunze 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 | #9,686 | #9,590 | 1.0% |
| Count | 3,351 | 3,242 | -3.3% |
| Per 100K | 1.14 | 1.08 | -4.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kunze bearers went from 3,351 to 3,242 (-3.3% change). The surname moved up 96 positions in the national ranking, going from #9,686 to #9,590.
FAQ
Kunze surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kunze?
Name Census estimates that about 3,718 living Americans carry the surname Kunze. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 92,188 residents.
How common is Kunze?
Kunze ranks #9,590 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.08 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 3,242 people with the surname Kunze. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,718), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.08 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.08 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Kunze.
Has Kunze become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kunze went from 3,351 recorded bearers to 3,242. That is a decrease of 109 (-3.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #9,686 to #9,590.
What does the Census say about the background of Kunze?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kunze, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.6%) and Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Kunze in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.0% (2,982 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kunze appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.0%), Hispanic (3.6%), Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Kunze (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 Kunze mean?
A German occupational surname referring to a maker or seller of pelts and furs. 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 Kunze (1.08 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 Kunze?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how common the surname Kunze is at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.