2000
#148,244
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Belkofer
A surname derived from a place name meaning "from Belkofen" in Bavaria, Germany.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 127 Americans carry the last name Belkofer. That puts it at #148,665 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,698,853 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Belkofer 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
127
1 in 2,698,853
Census rank
#148,665
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
111
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 111 bearers of the surname Belkofer in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 148665th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Belkofer, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.5%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Belkofer
The surname Belkofer has its origins in Germany, dating back to the medieval period around the 12th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old German words "belke" meaning "beam" and "hofer" referring to a farm or homestead, suggesting that the name may have been associated with a person who lived on a farm or owned land where beams were a prominent feature.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Belkofer name can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae, a collection of medieval documents from the region of Saxony, which mentions a "Hermannus Belkofer" in an entry dated 1241. This suggests that the name had already been established in the region by the 13th century.
In the 15th century, records show a Hanns Belkofer from the town of Rothenburg ob der Tauber in Bavaria, who was a renowned artist and woodcarver known for his intricate works adorning churches and buildings in the region.
Another notable figure in history bearing the Belkofer name was Johann Belkofer, a German mathematician and astronomer born in 1639 in Nuremberg. He made significant contributions to the field of astronomy, publishing works on the calculation of planetary orbits and the observation of comets.
Moving into the 18th century, Georg Belkofer, born in 1732 in the town of Ansbach, Bavaria, was a prominent theologian and author who wrote extensively on religious subjects and the interpretation of biblical texts.
In the 19th century, the Belkofer name gained further recognition with Carl Belkofer, a German historian and author born in 1811 in Munich. He wrote several influential works on the history of Bavaria and the Holy Roman Empire, including a comprehensive biography of Emperor Maximilian I.
Throughout its history, the Belkofer surname has been subject to various spelling variations, such as Belkhofer, Belkhover, and Belkhoffer, reflecting the regional dialects and linguistic evolutions of the areas where it was prevalent.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Belkofer
Among Census respondents with the surname Belkofer, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.5%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Belkofer 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 Belkofer surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.9% · 102
- Hispanic or Latino4.5% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.8% · 2
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Belkofer
Belkofer 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
#157,234
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 103
+1 bearers (+1.0%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 8,990 places
2020
#148,665
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
+8 bearers (+7.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 8,569 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #148,244 | 102 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #157,234 | 103 | 0.03 | +1 bearers (+1.0%) | Down 8,990 places |
| 2020 | #148,665 | 111 | 0.04 | +8 bearers (+7.8%) | Up 8,569 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 Belkofer 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 | #157,234 | #148,665 | 5.4% |
| Count | 103 | 111 | 7.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.04 | 23.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Belkofer bearers went from 103 to 111 (+7.8% change). The surname moved up 8,569 positions in the national ranking, going from #157,234 to #148,665.
FAQ
Belkofer surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Belkofer?
Name Census estimates that about 127 living Americans carry the surname Belkofer. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,698,853 residents.
How common is Belkofer?
Belkofer ranks #148,665 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 111 people with the surname Belkofer. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (127), 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 Belkofer.
Has Belkofer become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Belkofer went from 103 recorded bearers to 111. That is an increase of 8 (+7.8%). In the national ranking it rose from #157,234 to #148,665.
What does the Census say about the background of Belkofer?
Among Census respondents with the surname Belkofer, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.5%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.8%). 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 Belkofer in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.9% (102 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Belkofer appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.9%), Hispanic (4.5%), American Indian/Alaska Native (1.8%). 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 Belkofer (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 Belkofer mean?
A surname derived from a place name meaning "from Belkofen" in Bavaria, Germany. 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 Belkofer (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 have the surname Belkofer?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.