The surname Kaiser
A German patronymic surname, carried by 33,480 people in the United States.
Pronounced /ˈkaɪzɚ/ 2 syllables Soundex K260
Origin
German origin
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.
Kaiser is a patronymic surname: formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.
One of 1,101 German surnames on this site.
Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).
How common it is
2010 US Census
There were 33,480 people named Kaiser in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 9,222 Americans. That is up 2.8% since 2000, when the Census counted 32,567.
Who is named Kaiser
Race and Hispanic origin as people reported it in the 2010 Census
93% of people named Kaiser identified as white (not Hispanic), 2.3% as Hispanic or Latino (any race) and 1.7% as Black (not Hispanic).
- White (not Hispanic) 93%
- Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.3%
- Black (not Hispanic) 1.7%
- Two or more races 1.4%
- Asian and Pacific Islander 1.0%
- American Indian and Alaska Native 0.5%
Famous Kaisers
12 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first
- Henry J. KaiserAmerican industrialist (1882–1967)
- Willy KaiserBoxer (1912–1986)
- Otto KaiserAustrian pair skater (1901–1977)
- Henry KaiserAmerican guitarist, film director, and scientific diver, born 1952
- Natasha Kaiser-BrownAmerican track sprinter, born 1967
- Shomi KaiserBangladeshi actress, born 1969
- Wyatt KaiserAmerican ice hockey player, born 2002
- Peter KaiserAustrian politician, born 1958
- Nicholas KaiserBritish astronomer (1954-2023)
- George KaiserAmerican businessman, born 1942
- Eduard KaiserAustrian artist (1820-1895)
- Ray EamesAmerican artist, designer, and filmmaker (1912–1988)
Notable Kaisers come mostly from the United States (6), Austria (2) and Germany (1).
Spellings and sound-alikes
Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling
Other German surnames
Questions
- Where does the surname Kaiser come from?
- 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”)…
- How common is the surname Kaiser?
- 33,480 people in the United States had the surname Kaiser in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 9,222 Americans. It ranked 1,039th of 162,253 surnames.
- What ethnicity is the surname Kaiser?
- In the 2010 Census, 93% of people named Kaiser identified as white (not Hispanic), and 2.3% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).
- Who is the most famous person named Kaiser?
- Henry J. Kaiser, American industrialist (1882–1967), followed by Willy Kaiser.
- Where is the surname Kaiser most common?
- Wikidata records people named Kaiser in the United States, Austria and Germany and 2 other countries.
- How do you pronounce Kaiser?
- Kaiser is /ˈkaɪzɚ/, 2 syllables.
- What type of surname is Kaiser?
- Kaiser is a patronymic surname, formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.
- Is the surname Kaiser getting more or less common?
- More common. 32,567 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 33,480 in 2010, up 2.8%.