2000
#5,543
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,762
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.14
Rare Last name
Behnke
A German toponymic surname indicating someone from any of several places called Behnke or Benke.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,556 Americans carry the last name Behnke. That puts it at #5,825 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.91 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 52,281 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Behnke 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
6.6K
1 in 52,281
Census rank
#5,825
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,717 bearers of the surname Behnke in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.91 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5825th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Behnke, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Behnke
The surname Behnke has its origins in northern Germany, particularly in the regions around Berlin and Brandenburg. It is believed to have derived from the Low German word "ben" or "bene," meaning "leg" or "bone," combined with the diminutive suffix "-ke," indicating a small or slight stature. The name may have been initially used as a descriptive nickname for someone with a distinctive physical characteristic.
One of the earliest records of the Behnke surname dates back to the late 15th century in the Brandenburg area. In 1492, a document mentions a certain "Hans Behnke" as a landowner in the village of Neuendorf bei Potsdam. This suggests that the name was already established in the region by that time.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the Behnke family spread across various parts of northern Germany, with branches settling in areas like Mecklenburg, Pomerania, and East Prussia. Notable individuals from this period include Johann Behnke (1532-1612), a Protestant clergyman and theologian from Lübeck, who served as a pastor in several churches and authored several religious works.
In the 18th century, the Behnke surname appears in various records and documents across northern Germany. One prominent figure was Friedrich Behnke (1738-1810), a Prussian military officer who served in the Seven Years' War and later became a colonel in the Prussian army.
As the 19th century dawned, the Behnke family continued to establish itself in various professions and fields. Carl Behnke (1801-1875) was a German jurist and politician who served as a member of the Prussian National Assembly in 1848. Another notable figure was August Behnke (1830-1904), a German educator and author who wrote several textbooks on geography and history.
In more recent times, the Behnke surname has been carried by several notable individuals, including Kurt Behnke (1886-1965), a German mathematician and university professor known for his contributions to the field of functional analysis, and Günther Behnke (1910-1995), a German physicist and engineer who worked on the development of radar technology during World War II.
While the Behnke surname originated in northern Germany, it has since spread to other parts of Europe and beyond, with descendants of the original Behnke families found in various countries around the world.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Behnke
Among Census respondents with the surname Behnke, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Behnke 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 Behnke surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.4% · 5,341
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 159
- Two or more races2.6% · 146
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 39
- Black or African American0.3% · 17
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 15
Timeline
Historical Census data for Behnke
Behnke appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#5,919
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,824
+62 bearers (+1.1%)
Per 100,000 1.97
Rank movement Down 376 places
2020
#5,825
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,717
-107 bearers (-1.8%)
Per 100,000 1.91
Rank movement Up 94 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,543 | 5,762 | 2.14 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,919 | 5,824 | 1.97 | +62 bearers (+1.1%) | Down 376 places |
| 2020 | #5,825 | 5,717 | 1.91 | -107 bearers (-1.8%) | Up 94 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 Behnke 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 | #5,919 | #5,825 | 1.6% |
| Count | 5,824 | 5,717 | -1.8% |
| Per 100K | 1.97 | 1.91 | -2.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Behnke bearers went from 5,824 to 5,717 (-1.8% change). The surname moved up 94 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,919 to #5,825.
FAQ
Behnke surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Behnke?
Name Census estimates that about 6,556 living Americans carry the surname Behnke. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 52,281 residents.
How common is Behnke?
Behnke ranks #5,825 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.91 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,717 people with the surname Behnke. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,556), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.91 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.91 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Behnke.
Has Behnke become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Behnke went from 5,824 recorded bearers to 5,717. That is a decrease of 107 (-1.8%). In the national ranking it rose from #5,919 to #5,825.
What does the Census say about the background of Behnke?
Among Census respondents with the surname Behnke, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (2.6%). 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 Behnke in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.4% (5,341 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Behnke appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.4%), Hispanic (2.8%), Two or More Races (2.6%). 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 Behnke (2000, 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 Behnke mean?
A German toponymic surname indicating someone from any of several places called Behnke or Benke. 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 Behnke (1.91 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 are called Behnke?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans have the surname Behnke at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.