The Kraft surname
In the 2010 U.S. Census, 22,035 people carried this name — #1,635 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 13,400 people counted. That is up 2% from 21,579 in 2000.
What the name means
The meaning of the Kraft surname
From German, Jewish, Swedish and Danish surname, from the noun Kraft (“strength, power”).
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Kraft» (English), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.
In Switzerland’s population statistics
599 people named Kraft live in Switzerland.
They live in 22 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 380 people named Kraft.
59 of them 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 Argentina’s national register
At least 329 people named Kraft 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 Buenos Aires Province.
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 Poland’s population register
281 people named Kraft have a registered home in Poland.
Of the 401 in Poland’s national register, these are the ones with a permanent address on file. They live in 14 of Poland’s 16 voivodeships, most of all in Greater Poland.
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 Belgium’s population register
At least 34 people named Kraft 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 Liège.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they live today
Statbel (Statistics Belgium), family names of the population by municipality, 1 January 2026 — CC BY 4.0.
In the Nordic population registers
2,152 people named Kraft are counted in Sweden, Finland and Norway.
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
Kraft in American newspapers,
1909–1963.
Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 397,129 pages in all carry the name.
Who carried it
People named Kraft,
with a public archive behind them.
-
Adam Kraft 1450–1509 · architect -
Hans Krafft the Elder 1481–1542 · goldsmith -
Louis Crato of Nassau-Saarbrücken 1663–1713 · military personnel -
Jens Kraft 1720–1765 · mathematician -
Antonín Kraft 1749–1820 · composer
Wikidata and Wikimedia Commons (CC0) · 214 lives in all are documented under this name.
Nearby in the index
Surnames next to Kraft.
- Koziol 3,194 · U.S. census
- Kozlowski 10,358 · U.S. census
- Kozma 1,294 · U.S. census
- Kracher 137 · U.S. census
- Kraemer 7,726 · U.S. census
- Krafft 1,211 · U.S. census
- Krahenbuhl 484 · U.S. census
- Krajewski 3,416 · U.S. census
- Krakowiak 366 · U.S. census
- Krakowski 962 · U.S. census
- Kramer 63,936 · U.S. census
- Kramp 1,433 · U.S. census
When the index is not enough
This page says where Kraft 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.