# Kaiser (surname)

Source: https://namelineage.com/surname/kaiser/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. Counts from the US Census Bureau; origin and etymology from Wiktionary; bearers from Wikidata. Data updated 2026-11-11.

A surname.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Origin | German |
| Type | patronymic, formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name |
| People in the US (2010 Census) | 33,480 |
| US rank (2010) | 1,039 of 162,253 |
| How often | about 1 in every 9,222 people |
| Change since 2000 | +2.8% (32,567 in 2000) |
| Pronunciation | /ˈkaɪzɚ/, 2 syllables |
| Variant spellings | none recorded |

## Etymology

Inherited from Middle English kayser, from Old High German keisar (“emperor”), from Proto-West Germanic *kaisar, from Proto-Germanic *kaisaraz, from Latin Caesar. The native Old English descendant of that Proto-Germanic word was cāser (“emperor”), but the shape of Middle English kayser (“emperor”) (versus the expected *caser, *coser) suggests it was borrowed from another Germanic language rather than inherited, and the modern English spelling and sense seem to be modified after modern German rather than a direct continuation of Middle English. Compare tsar, which was borrowed from Slavic. Doublet of Caesar and tsar.

## Who carries it

Share of people named Kaiser in the 2010 US Census by the Census's own race and ethnicity groups. The Census suppresses a share when the count behind it is small.

| Group | Share |
|---|---|
| White (not Hispanic) | 93% |
| Black (not Hispanic) | 1.7% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 2.3% |
| Asian and Pacific Islander | 1.0% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 0.5% |
| Two or more races | 1.4% |

## Where

Wikidata records people named Kaiser in the United States, Austria, Germany, Bangladesh and the United Kingdom.

## People named Kaiser

- Henry J. Kaiser, American industrialist (1882–1967)
- Willy Kaiser, boxer (1912–1986)
- Otto Kaiser, Austrian pair skater (1901–1977)
- Henry Kaiser, American guitarist, film director, and scientific diver
- Natasha Kaiser-Brown, American track sprinter
- Shomi Kaiser, Bangladeshi actress
- Wyatt Kaiser, American ice hockey player
- Peter Kaiser, Austrian politician
- Nicholas Kaiser, British astronomer (1954-2023)
- George Kaiser, American businessman
- Eduard Kaiser, Austrian artist (1820-1895)
- Ray Eames, American artist, designer, and filmmaker (1912–1988)

## Similar surnames

Kiser, Keiser, Kizer, Kayser, Kyser, Kaser, Koser, Kiger, Kiker, Keyser, Kocher, Kucera.

## How to read these numbers

A Census count is people alive and counted in 2010, not births, and names occurring fewer than 100 times are not published at all. Ethnicity shares are the Census's own categories.