NameCensus.

UK surname

Kiss

A surname of uncertain origin, possibly derived from a nickname or from a place name.

In the 1881 census there were 74 people recorded with the Kiss surname, ranking it #23,062 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 1,076, ranked #5,428, up from #23,062 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Yardley, London parishes and Lambeth. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Herefordshire, Wigan and Broxtowe.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Kiss is 1,076 in 2016. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 1354.1%.

1881 census count

74

Ranked #23,062

Modern count

1,076

2016, ranked #5,428

Peak year

2016

1,076 bearers

Map years

4

1911 to 2016

Key insights

  • Kiss had 74 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #23,062 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 1,076 in 2016, ranked #5,428.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 110 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Established Multi-Ethnic Communities.

Kiss surname distribution map

The map shows where the Kiss surname is concentrated in each census or modern distribution year. Darker areas mean a stronger local concentration.

Distribution map

Kiss surname density by area, 2016 modern.

Loading map
Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Kiss over time

The table below tracks recorded surname counts and rank from the 19th-century census years through the modern adult-register period.

Year Period Count Rank
1851 historical 40 #26,118
1861 historical 77 #23,975
1881 historical 74 #23,062
1891 historical 89 #25,542
1901 historical 90 #24,021
1911 historical 110 #21,519
1997 modern 390 #11,215
1998 modern 400 #11,335
1999 modern 399 #11,463
2000 modern 398 #11,443
2001 modern 394 #11,344
2002 modern 403 #11,382
2003 modern 393 #11,401
2004 modern 417 #10,943
2005 modern 450 #10,209
2006 modern 507 #9,386
2007 modern 555 #8,841
2008 modern 604 #8,367
2009 modern 658 #7,997
2010 modern 727 #7,562
2011 modern 736 #7,424
2012 modern 888 #6,305
2013 modern 945 #6,109
2014 modern 1,020 #5,767
2015 modern 1,051 #5,570
2016 modern 1,076 #5,428

Geography

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Where Kiss' are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Yardley, London parishes, Lambeth, Thurrock, Grays and Leamington Priors. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Herefordshire, Wigan, Broxtowe, West Oxfordshire and North Lincolnshire. Treat these as concentration signals, not proof that every family line began there.

Some modern areas include a three-digit suffix, such as Leeds 110. The suffix is a small-area code, so it stays in the table while the prose uses the plain place name.

Top historical parishes

Rank Parish Area
1 Yardley Warwickshire
2 London parishes London 3
3 Lambeth London (South Districts)
4 Thurrock, Grays Essex
5 Leamington Priors Warwickshire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Herefordshire 022 Herefordshire, County of
2 Wigan 027 Wigan
3 Broxtowe 011 Broxtowe
4 West Oxfordshire 004 West Oxfordshire
5 North Lincolnshire 011 North Lincolnshire

Forenames

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First names often paired with Kiss

These lists show first names that appear often with the Kiss surname in historical and recent records.

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Kiss

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Kiss, this points to the kinds of places where the surname is most concentrated today.

These neighbourhood labels describe areas, not individual people. They are useful because surnames often cluster through family history, migration, housing patterns and local work. A surname can be strongest in one type of neighbourhood even when people with that name live across the country.

The UK classification gives the national picture. The London classification is more specific to the capital, where housing, age profile, tenure and population mix can look quite different from the rest of the UK.

UK neighbourhood type

UK Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Low-Skilled Migrant and Student Communities

Group

Established Multi-Ethnic Communities

Nationally, the Kiss surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Established Multi-Ethnic Communities, within Low-Skilled Migrant and Student Communities. This does not mean every Kiss household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Parents and young children in this Group are drawn from diverse ethnic backgrounds in broadly similar proportions. Employment is typically in elementary occupations, though workers in professional, intermediate or skilled trades occupations are also present. The residential landscape is dominated by terraced housing, although semi-detached houses and flats are also present. This Group is found in London and in many provincial towns and cities throughout the U.K.

Wider pattern

Young adults, many of whom are students, predominate in these high-density and overcrowded neighbourhoods of rented terrace houses or flats. Most ethnic minorities are present in these communities, as are people born in European countries that are not part of the EU. Students aside, low skilled occupations predominate, and unemployment rates are above average. Overall, the mix of students and more sedentary households means that neighbourhood average numbers of children are not very high. The Mixed or Multiple ethnic group composition of neighbourhoods is often associated with low rates of affiliation to Christian religions. This Supergroup predominates in non-central urban locations the UK, particularly within England in the Midlands and the outskirts of west, south and north-east London.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

The Greater London Mix

Group

Skilled Trades and Construction Workers

Within London, Kiss is most associated with areas classed as Skilled Trades and Construction Workers, part of The Greater London Mix. This gives the surname a London-specific profile rather than forcing the capital into the same pattern as the rest of the country.

Read profile summary

Group profile

These scattered, peripheral and often low residential density neighbourhoods house more workers in skilled trades and construction. Few households rent social housing and there are few students. Multiple car ownership is higher than the Supergroup average, perhaps because of poorer public transport connectivity. Incidence of mixed or multiple ethnicity is below the Supergroup average, and the absence of individuals identifying as Pakistani or Other Asian groups is also less pronounced. Flatted accommodation is less dominant than elsewhere in the Supergroup.

Wider London pattern

A Supergroup embodying London's diversity in many respects, apart from low numbers of residents identifying as of Bangladeshi, Indian, Pakistani or Other (non-Chinese) Asian ethnicity. There is lower than average prevalence of families with dependent children, while there are above average occurrences of never-married individuals and single-person households. The age distribution is skewed towards younger, single residents and couples without children, with many individuals identifying as of mixed or multiple ethnicity. Social rented or private rented housing is slightly more prevalent than average, and many residents live in flats. Individuals typically work in professional and associated roles in public administration, education or health rather than in elementary occupations in agriculture, energy, water, construction or manufacturing. Incidence of students is slightly below average. Individuals declaring no religion are more prevalent than average and non-use of English at home is below average.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Kiss is most concentrated in decile 10 for access to healthy assets and hazards. This places the surname towards the healthier end of the index.

Lower deciles point towards weaker access to healthy assets or stronger exposure to local hazards. Higher deciles point towards stronger access and fewer hazards.

10
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Kiss falls in decile 4 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname near the middle of the scale.

Decile 1 represents the more deprived end of the scale. Decile 10 represents the less deprived end.

4
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Kiss is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 50-60 mbit/s.

The scale below places that band in context, from slower local download bands through to faster ones.

8
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - Other

This describes the area pattern most associated with Kiss, not the ethnicity of every person with the surname.

Meaning and origin of Kiss

The surname Kiss is of Hungarian origin, deriving from the medieval Hungarian word "kis" meaning "small" or "little". It is believed to have originated as a nickname or descriptive name for someone of diminutive stature or young age in the 13th or 14th century.

The earliest recorded instances of the surname Kiss can be found in medieval Hungarian documents and records from the 15th century. One notable example is a mention of a certain Jakab Kiss in a 1458 charter from the town of Szeged.

In the 16th century, the surname Kiss began to spread beyond Hungary to other parts of Central and Eastern Europe, particularly in areas with significant Hungarian populations or influence, such as parts of modern-day Romania, Slovakia, and Serbia.

The name Kiss is also found in various forms and spellings in historical records, including Kys, Kyss, and Kisch. These variations likely arose due to differences in regional dialects and the transcription of the name by scribes and record-keepers.

Over the centuries, several notable individuals have borne the surname Kiss. One early example is the Hungarian poet and writer Mihály Vörösmarty Kiss (1800-1855), who played a significant role in the Hungarian Renaissance literary movement.

Another prominent figure was the Hungarian-American engineer and physicist Theodore von Kármán (1881-1963), whose original surname was Kiss before he was ennobled and adopted the "von Kármán" name.

In the 19th century, the Kiss surname gained recognition through the work of the Hungarian composer and pianist Ernő Kiss (1799-1849), who composed numerous piano works and other pieces.

The 20th century saw the rise of the American artist and sculptor August Kiss (1911-1997), whose abstract steel sculptures can be found in various public spaces and museums across the United States.

More recently, the surname Kiss has been associated with the American rock band KISS, formed in 1973 and known for their distinctive stage persona and makeup. The band's co-founders, Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley, both bear the surname Kiss, though it is not their original family name.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Kiss families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Kiss surname. Use the location tables for concentration, then the name and occupation tables for the people behind the surname.

Top counties

Total is the county count. Frequency and index adjust for local population size, so they are better concentration signals. Surrey leads with 26 Kiss' recorded in 1881 and an index of 7.39x.

County Total Index
Surrey 26 7.39x
Middlesex 14 1.94x
Worcestershire 12 12.73x
Warwickshire 9 4.95x
Essex 5 3.51x
Cumberland 4 6.44x
Cheshire 1 0.63x
Lancashire 1 0.12x
Lincolnshire 1 0.87x
Royal Navy 1 11.63x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Yardley in Worcestershire leads with 12 Kiss' recorded in 1881 and an index of 497.93x.

Place Total Index
Yardley 12 497.93x
Camberwell 11 23.87x
Lambeth 7 11.13x
Southwark St George Martyr 7 48.21x
Islington London 6 8.58x
Leamington 6 495.87x
Grays Thurrock 5 378.79x
Brampton 4 470.59x
St George In East London 3 44.18x
Shoreditch London 2 6.39x
Warwick St Nicholas 2 150.38x
Clerkenwell London 1 5.87x
Dodcott Cum Wilkesley 1 625.00x
Grantham 1 66.67x
Hackney London 1 2.47x
Kensington London 1 2.49x
Newington 1 3.75x
Royal Navy 1 13.61x
Sutton 1 34.84x
Warwick St Mary 1 63.29x

Top female names

These are the female first names most often recorded with the Kiss surname in 1881. Names are not merged, so initials, variant spellings and transcription quirks can appear as separate rows.

Name Count
Mary 7
Eliza 3
Elizabeth 3
Elinor 2
Louisa 2
Maria 2
Sarah 2
A.S. 1
Ann 1
Annie 1
Clara 1
E.A. 1
Emily 1
Emma 1
Evelyn 1
Harriet 1
Hetty 1
Isabella 1
Jane 1
Lydia 1
Marie 1
Martha 1
Sophia 1

Top male names

These are the male first names most often recorded with the Kiss surname in 1881. Names are not merged, so initials, variant spellings and transcription quirks can appear as separate rows.

Name Count
Henry 4
Alfred 3
Thomas 3
George 2
James 2
John 2
Louis 2
Samuel 2
Walter 2
William 2
Arthur 1
Charles 1
Edwd 1
Ernest 1
Isaac 1
J.F. 1
Josef 1
Joseph 1
Lionel 1
Richard 1
Robert 1
Stephen 1
Wm. 1

FAQ

Kiss surname: questions and answers

How common was the Kiss surname in 1881?

In 1881, 74 people were recorded with the Kiss surname. That placed it at #23,062 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Kiss surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 1,076 in 2016. That gives Kiss a modern rank of #5,428.

What does the Kiss surname mean?

A surname of uncertain origin, possibly derived from a nickname or from a place name.

What does the Kiss map show?

The map shows local surname concentration for the selected year. Darker areas have a stronger concentration of Kiss bearers relative to the surrounding population.

What records is this surname page based on?

The historical counts come from census surname records. The modern counts and neighbourhood summaries come from later surname distribution records. Counts are recorded bearers in those records, not a live estimate of everyone with the name today.