2010
#141,140
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 118
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Alferink
A Dutch habitational surname referring to someone from Alferink, once a farmstead.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 132 Americans carry the last name Alferink. That puts it at #145,757 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,596,624 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Alferink surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
132
1 in 2,596,624
Census rank
#145,757
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
115
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 115 bearers of the surname Alferink in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 145757th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Alferink, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.1%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Alferink
The surname ALFERINK originated in the Netherlands, with records of the name dating back to the 16th century. The name is thought to be derived from a combination of the Dutch words "alf" meaning "elf" and "rink" meaning "ring" or "circle". This suggests the name may have initially referred to someone who lived near or worked at a circular earthwork or embankment associated with elves or mythical creatures.
The earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in Dutch church and municipal records from the 1500s. Some variations in spelling include Alferynck, Alffrinck, and Alfferinck. The name appears to have originated in the eastern provinces of the Netherlands, such as Overijssel and Gelderland, where it was most commonly found in its early history.
One of the earliest known individuals with the ALFERINK surname was Jan Alferink, a farmer from the village of Deventer in Overijssel, who was born in 1572. Another early record is of Hendrick Alferink, a merchant from Arnhem in Gelderland, who was mentioned in a trade document from 1598.
In the 17th century, the name began to spread to other parts of the Netherlands, with instances recorded in cities like Amsterdam and Rotterdam. A notable bearer of the name during this time was Pieter Alferink, a painter from Utrecht who lived from 1620 to 1685.
The ALFERINK surname also has a connection to several Dutch place names, such as the village of Alferink in the municipality of Enschede, which may have been named after an early bearer of the surname or vice versa.
Other notable individuals with the ALFERINK surname include:
1. Gerrit Alferink (1787-1854), a Dutch politician and member of the States General.
2. Wilhelmina Alferink (1856-1932), a Dutch philanthropist and social reformer.
3. Johannes Alferink (1892-1971), a Dutch botanist and plant collector.
4. Hendrik Alferink (1918-2003), a Dutch artist and sculptor.
5. Dirk Alferink (born 1953), a Dutch politician and member of the European Parliament.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Alferink
Among Census respondents with the surname Alferink, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.1%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Alferink bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Alferink surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.3% · 105
- Two or more races6.1% · 7
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.7% · 2
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Alferink
Alferink appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#145,757
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
-3 bearers (-2.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 4,617 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #141,140 | 118 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #145,757 | 115 | 0.04 | -3 bearers (-2.5%) | Down 4,617 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Alferink surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #141,140 | #145,757 | -3.3% |
| Count | 118 | 115 | -2.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -3.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Alferink bearers went from 118 to 115 (-2.5% change). The surname moved down 4,617 positions in the national ranking, going from #141,140 to #145,757.
FAQ
Alferink surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Alferink?
Name Census estimates that about 132 living Americans carry the surname Alferink. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,596,624 residents.
How common is Alferink?
Alferink ranks #145,757 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 115 people with the surname Alferink. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (132), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Alferink.
Has Alferink become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Alferink went from 118 recorded bearers to 115. That is a decrease of 3 (-2.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #141,140 to #145,757.
What does the Census say about the background of Alferink?
Among Census respondents with the surname Alferink, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.1%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.7%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Alferink in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.3% (105 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Alferink appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.3%), Two or More Races (6.1%), Asian/Pacific Islander (1.7%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Alferink (2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Alferink mean?
A Dutch habitational surname referring to someone from Alferink, once a farmstead. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Alferink (0.04 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people share the surname Alferink?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.