Explore the Family Name Klar

The meaning of Klar

1. German: nickname from Middle High German and Middle Low German klār ‘pure, beautiful, clear’. 2. German: from the female personal name Klara, an equivalent of Clara (see Clair and Sinclair). 3. German: from a short form of the Latin personal name Hilarius (see Hillary). Compare Clor and Clore. 4. Jewish (Ashkenazic): artificial name from German Klar ‘clear, beautiful’. 5. Swedish: probably of German origin (see above). Some characteristic forenames: Jewish Ezriel, Tzvi, Baruch, Devorah, Isadore, Nachman, Yitzchok. German Gerhard, Johann, Erhard, Kurt, Willibald.

Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.

How common is the last name Klar in the United States?

Based on the data from the Decennial U.S. Census, the popularity of the surname Klar has seen a significant increase between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, it was ranked 20,887th in terms of being common, but by 2010, it had risen to the 17,258th spot, marking a 17.37% change. The number of individuals bearing this surname also increased from 1,175 in 2000 to 1,641 in 2010, indicating a notable rise of nearly 40%. For every 100,000 people in the U.S., 0.44 bore the name Klar in 2000, rising to 0.56 in 2010, which is a 27.27% boost.

20002010Change
Rank#20,887#17,25817.37%
Count1,1751,64139.66%
Proportion per 100k0.440.5627.27%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Klar

Turning to ethnicity, the Decennial U.S. Census data reveals that the majority of people with the Klar surname identified as White in both 2000 and 2010, although there was a slight decline from 94.04% to 89.4% during this period. Those identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander saw a substantial increase from 2.3% in 2000 to 5.55% in 2010, marking a 141.3% change. There was also an uptick in those identifying as Hispanic, rising from 1.28% to 2.32%, an 81.25% increase. The proportion of individuals identifying as two or more races remained relatively stable at around 1.6%. However, there were no individuals with the Klar surname who identified as Black or American Indian and Alaskan Native in either 2000 or 2010.

20002010Change
White94.04%89.4%-4.93%
Asian/Pacific Islander2.3%5.55%141.3%
Hispanic1.28%2.32%81.25%
Two or More Races1.62%1.65%1.85%
Black0%0%0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0%0%0%