2000
#140,756
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 109
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Kyong
A surname of Korean origin meaning "sword" or referring to a swordsmith.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 128 Americans carry the last name Kyong. That puts it at #147,954 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,677,768 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kyong 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
128
1 in 2,677,768
Census rank
#147,954
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
112
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 112 bearers of the surname Kyong in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 147954th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kyong, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 94.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.7%) and White (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kyong
The surname KYONG originates from the Korean peninsula, with roots dating back to the Goryeo dynasty (918-1392 AD). It is derived from the Korean word "gyeong," which means "capital" or "metropolitan." This suggests that the surname's bearers may have originally hailed from a prominent city or administrative center during that era.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the KYONG surname can be found in the Annals of the Goryeo Dynasty, a historical record compiled during the 14th century. The text mentions a scholar named KYONG Jeong-sik, who served as a royal advisor to King Gongmin in the mid-1300s.
During the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1897), the KYONG surname gained prominence among the scholarly elite and bureaucratic classes. Notable figures from this period include KYONG Sang-hon (1537-1599), a renowned Confucian scholar and writer, and KYONG Nan-seong (1766-1834), a celebrated painter and calligrapher.
As the Korean peninsula underwent periods of turmoil and unrest, some KYONG families migrated to neighboring regions, leading to variations in the spelling and pronunciation of their surname. For instance, in parts of China, the name was transcribed as "Qiong" or "Qiāng."
One of the most famous bearers of the KYONG surname was KYONG Che-yong (1536-1594), a military leader and strategist who played a pivotal role in repelling Japanese invasions during the Imjin War of the late 16th century. His exploits are celebrated in Korean folklore and historical accounts.
In more recent times, KYONG Dong-won (1920-2003) was a renowned South Korean diplomat and politician, serving as the country's Foreign Minister in the 1960s and playing a key role in the normalization of relations with Japan.
While the KYONG surname has its roots in Korea, its bearers have since dispersed across the globe, with notable individuals emerging in various fields, from academia to the arts, and beyond.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kyong
Among Census respondents with the surname Kyong, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 94.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.7%) and White (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Kyong 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 Kyong surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander94.6% · 106
- Two or more races2.7% · 3
- White1.8% · 2
- Hispanic or Latino0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kyong
Kyong 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
#142,108
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
+8 bearers (+7.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 1,352 places
2020
#147,954
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
-5 bearers (-4.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 5,846 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #140,756 | 109 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #142,108 | 117 | 0.04 | +8 bearers (+7.3%) | Down 1,352 places |
| 2020 | #147,954 | 112 | 0.04 | -5 bearers (-4.3%) | Down 5,846 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 Kyong 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 | #142,108 | #147,954 | -4.1% |
| Count | 117 | 112 | -4.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -6.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kyong bearers went from 117 to 112 (-4.3% change). The surname moved down 5,846 positions in the national ranking, going from #142,108 to #147,954.
FAQ
Kyong surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kyong?
Name Census estimates that about 128 living Americans carry the surname Kyong. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,677,768 residents.
How common is Kyong?
Kyong ranks #147,954 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 112 people with the surname Kyong. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (128), 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 Kyong.
Has Kyong become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kyong went from 117 recorded bearers to 112. That is a decrease of 5 (-4.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #142,108 to #147,954.
What does the Census say about the background of Kyong?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kyong, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 94.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.7%) and White (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?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest self-reported group for the surname Kyong in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.6% (106 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kyong appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (94.6%), Two or More Races (2.7%), White (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 Kyong (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 Kyong mean?
A surname of Korean origin meaning "sword" or referring to a swordsmith. 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 Kyong (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 many Americans have the surname Kyong?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.