Named in honor of Jens Kandler (b. 1973), who has been an observer at Drebach since the age of 14. Beginning in 1993, he has been observing minor planets and comets, at first photographically and then using a CCD. Among the Drebach observations are many from both the 1996 and 1998 oppositions of this object. A skilled industrial mechanic and tile setter, Kandler is an enthusiastic proponent of astronomy. Name proposed by the first discoverer.