2000
#18,656
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,361
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.50
Rare Last name
Kingman
A status surname derived from the Old English words 'cyning' meaning king and 'man' meaning servant or subject.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,545 Americans carry the last name Kingman. That puts it at #19,987 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.45 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 221,847 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kingman 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Kingman with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
1.5K
1 in 221,847
Census rank
#19,987
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,347 bearers of the surname Kingman in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.45 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 19987th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kingman, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.6%) and Two or More Races (4.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kingman
The surname Kingman is of English origin, tracing its roots back to the 11th century. It is a locational name, derived from the Old English words "cyning" meaning king and "mann" meaning man, suggesting that the original bearer was a servant or retainer of a king.
In the Domesday Book of 1086, a record of landowners in England, there are several references to places with names containing the elements "cyning" and "mann," indicating the early presence of this surname.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Kingman appears in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire in 1191, where a Robert Kingman is mentioned. Another early record is from the Feet of Fines for Yorkshire in 1301, where a William Kyngman is listed.
The surname Kingman has been associated with various places throughout England, such as Kingman's Farm in Gloucestershire and Kingman's Wood in Oxfordshire, further reinforcing its locational origins.
Notable individuals bearing the surname Kingman throughout history include:
1. John Kingman (1572-1643), an English clergyman and writer who served as Bishop of St. Asaph and authored several religious works.
2. Daniel Kingman (1655-1727), an English Quaker and prominent figure in the early days of the Religious Society of Friends.
3. Edward Kingman (1756-1834), an American soldier who fought in the Revolutionary War and later became a successful merchant and landowner in Massachusetts.
4. Rufus Kingman (1819-1894), an American inventor and manufacturer who patented several improvements to agricultural machinery and founded the Kingman Plow Company.
5. Harry Luman Kingman (1892-1985), an American geographer and educator who served as the president of the Association of American Geographers and authored numerous books on geography and cartography.
The surname Kingman has endured through the centuries, carrying with it a rich history and connections to various regions and notable individuals across England and beyond.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kingman
Among Census respondents with the surname Kingman, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.6%) and Two or More Races (4.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Kingman 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 Kingman surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White85.3% · 1,149
- Hispanic or Latino7.6% · 102
- Two or more races4.8% · 64
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.6% · 22
- Black or African American0.6% · 8
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kingman
Kingman 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
#25,202
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 983
-378 bearers (-27.8%)
Per 100,000 0.33
Rank movement Down 6,546 places
2020
#19,987
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,347
+364 bearers (+37.0%)
Per 100,000 0.45
Rank movement Up 5,215 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #18,656 | 1,361 | 0.50 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #25,202 | 983 | 0.33 | -378 bearers (-27.8%) | Down 6,546 places |
| 2020 | #19,987 | 1,347 | 0.45 | +364 bearers (+37.0%) | Up 5,215 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 Kingman 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 | #25,202 | #19,987 | 20.7% |
| Count | 983 | 1,347 | 37.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.33 | 0.45 | 36.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kingman bearers went from 983 to 1,347 (+37.0% change). The surname moved up 5,215 positions in the national ranking, going from #25,202 to #19,987.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Kingman
FAQ
Kingman surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kingman?
Name Census estimates that about 1,545 living Americans carry the surname Kingman. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 221,847 residents.
How common is Kingman?
Kingman ranks #19,987 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.45 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 1,347 people with the surname Kingman. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,545), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.45 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.45 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 Kingman.
Has Kingman become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kingman went from 983 recorded bearers to 1,347. That is an increase of 364 (+37.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #25,202 to #19,987.
What does the Census say about the background of Kingman?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kingman, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.6%) and Two or More Races (4.8%). 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 Kingman in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.3% (1,149 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kingman appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (85.3%), Hispanic (7.6%), Two or More Races (4.8%). 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 Kingman (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 Kingman mean?
A status surname derived from the Old English words 'cyning' meaning king and 'man' meaning servant or subject. 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 Kingman (0.45 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 Kingman?
For a quick modern take, check how many people have the surname Kingman on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.