Kemnitz Family Name and Heraldry

Kemnitz is a German surname. Smith's 1956 dictionary gives the meaning “one who came from Kemnitz (stone), the name of various places in Germany”.

Heraldry and the Kemnitz name

A coat of arms was granted to a particular family line, not to everyone named Kemnitz, so a shared surname is a clue rather than a claim to the arms.

Where the name comes from

Place names like this marked newcomers by where they had come from. The name also appears as Kemnitzer.

The Census Bureau's 2010 surname file lists Kemnitz with 924 bearers, at rank 26,422. For the full story, order the Kemnitz surname pack.