Welker
A masculine given name of German origin meaning "fuller" or "walker".
Name Census estimates that about 10 living Americans carry the first name Welker. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Welker today is around 8 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Welker births was 2012 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Welker. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Welker. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
10
~ 1 in 34,275,434 Americans
Peak year
2012
5 babies that year
Average age
8
years old
2023 SSA rank
#14,066
Tracked since 2012
Popularity
Welker: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Welker from the 2010s through to the 2020s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 5 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Welker by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Welker during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Welker
The given name Welker is believed to have originated in the Germanic language family, with roots that can be traced back to the 8th century AD. The name is thought to be derived from the Old High German word "walkan," which means "to roll" or "to walk." This may have been a reference to someone who walked a great deal or possibly a miller or baker who rolled dough.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Welker can be found in the Codex Augiensis, a 9th-century Latin manuscript from the Abbey of Reichenau on Lake Constance. The manuscript contains a list of names, including a reference to a person named "Walcherus," which is believed to be an early variation of the name Welker.
In the Middle Ages, the name Welker was particularly prevalent in the Germanic regions of central and western Europe. Several notable historical figures bore this name, including Walkerus de Palatio (1170-1233), a Flemish nobleman and crusader who participated in the Fifth Crusade to the Holy Land.
Another prominent individual with the name Welker was Johannes Walkerius (1542-1618), a German theologian and reformer who played a significant role in the Protestant Reformation. He was a contemporary of Martin Luther and worked closely with him in translating the Bible into German.
In the 16th century, the name Welker also appeared in English records. One notable bearer was William Walker (1545-1592), an English explorer and privateer who led several expeditions to the West Indies and the Spanish Main.
During the 17th century, the name Welker gained popularity in the Netherlands. One of the most famous Dutch figures with this name was Jan Welker (1623-1688), a renowned painter and engraver whose works are featured in several museums across Europe.
As the name Welker spread across different regions and cultures, it underwent various spelling variations, such as Walcker, Walker, and Welcker. However, the core meaning and origins of the name remained rooted in the Germanic tradition.
While the name Welker may have fallen out of widespread use in modern times, it holds a rich historical legacy that spans several centuries and regions, reflecting the diverse cultural influences that have shaped the evolution of given names over time.
People
Welker + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Welker as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with W
Other first names starting with W with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Welker: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Welker?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 10 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Welker going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 34,275,434 US residents.
Is Welker a common name?
We classify Welker as "Very Rare". It ranks above 28.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 10 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Welker most popular?
The single biggest year for Welker was 2012, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Welker is about 8 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Welker in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Welker a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Welker in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Welker still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Welker in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Welker can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people are called Welker?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.