The Kim surname
In the 2010 U.S. Census, 262,352 people carried this name — #77 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 1,120 people counted. That is up 35% from 194,067 in 2000.
Where the name comes from
The origin of the Kim surname
A unisex given name. A male given name transferred from the surname.
Clipping of Kimball and Kimberley as a male name, and of Kimberley and Kimberly as a female name.
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Kim» (English), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.
In Argentina’s national register
At least 3,187 people named Kim live in Argentina.
RENAPER only publishes a name in a province when more than ten people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in City of Buenos Aires.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.
In Switzerland’s population statistics
1,104 people named Kim live in Switzerland.
They live in 20 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Zurich.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO), «Surnames of the permanent resident population by canton», 2025, opendata.swiss/en/dataset/nachnamen-der-standigen-wohnbevolkerung-nach-kanton3 · names with fewer than 3 bearers in a canton are not published.
In France’s civil register
France’s register of deaths holds 428 people named Kim.
Most of them — 238 — were born outside France. Those born in France came from 27 départements, most often Bas-Rhin.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they were born
Fichier des personnes décédées, INSEE — Licence Ouverte 2.0 · deaths recorded in France since 1970, by place of birth.
In Belgium’s population register
At least 399 people named Kim live in Belgium.
Statbel only publishes a name in a municipality when five or more people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Brussels-Capital.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
Statbel (Statistics Belgium), family names of the population by municipality, 1 January 2026 — CC BY 4.0.
In Poland’s population register
199 people named Kim have a registered home in Poland.
Of the 4,012 in Poland’s national register, these are the ones with a permanent address on file. They live in 12 of Poland’s 16 voivodeships, most of all in Masovian.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
PESEL register, Ministry of Digital Affairs of Poland (dane.gov.pl) — CC0 · living people by voivodeship of permanent residence, 20 January 2026.
In the Nordic population registers
1,333 people named Kim are counted in Sweden, Norway and Finland.
Sweden’s figure is from 31 December 2022, the last count Statistics Sweden published. Norway publishes only surnames with 200 or more bearers. Finland counts its citizens, at home or abroad.
Counted, by country
Own calculations based on data from Statistics Sweden (SCB), surnames with at least two bearers, 31 December 2022 — CC BY 4.0 (names with 20 or more bearers shown) · Statistics Norway (SSB, ssb.no), table 12891, 2025 — CC BY 4.0 · Digital and Population Data Services Agency (DVV), Finland, surname statistics, August 2026 — CC BY 4.0.
In print
Kim in American newspapers,
1834–1941.
Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 924,283 pages in all carry the name.
Who carried it
People named Kim,
with a public archive behind them.
-
Kim Yushin 595–673 · politician -
Il-yeon 1206–1289 · writer -
Kim Chong-jik 1431–1491 · civil servant -
Kim Si-min 1554–1592 · military personnel -
Inmok 1584–1632 · consort
Wikidata and Wikimedia Commons (CC0) · 145 lives in all are documented under this name.
Nearby in the index
Surnames next to Kim.
- Kilburg 804 · U.S. census
- Kilhoffer 212 · U.S. census
- Kilian 3,065 · U.S. census
- Kilic 573 · U.S. census
- Killian 12,717 · U.S. census
- Killy 123 · U.S. census
- Kimmel 10,528 · U.S. census
- Kimmerle 432 · U.S. census
- Kimmich 396 · U.S. census
- Kin 1,739 · U.S. census
- Kind 1,574 · U.S. census
- Kindel 1,872 · U.S. census
When the index is not enough
This page says where Kim is.
A volume says what happened to it.
Every page in the index is free and stays free. The Heritage Volume is the long form: the full paper trail, the arms, the crossing — bound, and yours.