Find out how popular the last name Benke is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Benke.

Benke, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Benke surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Benke in America

Benke is the 23837th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Benke surname appeared 1,060 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Benke.

We can also compare 2010 data for Benke to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Benke

The surname Benke has its origins in Germany, specifically in the region of Bavaria. It is believed to have emerged in the 14th century, derived from the German word "Benke," which means "bench." This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who crafted or worked with benches, such as a carpenter or a furniture maker.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Benke can be found in the town records of Augsburg, Bavaria, dating back to the late 15th century. In these records, a person named Hans Benke is mentioned as a resident of the town.

In the 16th century, the name Benke appeared in various historical documents across different parts of Bavaria. For example, in the parish records of Bamberg, there is a mention of a Johann Benke who was born in 1541.

The name Benke has also been associated with several notable individuals throughout history. One such person was Friedrich Benke (1763-1828), a German theologian and author who served as a professor at the University of Göttingen. Another notable figure was Karl Benke (1768-1824), a German architect and urban planner who designed several buildings in Berlin and other cities.

In the 19th century, the surname Benke began to spread beyond Bavaria and into other regions of Germany. One example is Wilhelm Benke (1816-1899), a German educator and writer who was born in Saxony but spent much of his life in Prussia.

Another noteworthy individual with the surname Benke was Theodor Benke (1851-1933), a German composer and music teacher who was born in Silesia (now part of Poland). He composed numerous works, including operas, symphonies, and chamber music.

The name Benke has also been found in various historical records and manuscripts from other parts of Europe. For instance, in the 17th century, there are records of people with the surname Benke living in the Netherlands and Belgium.

It is worth noting that some variations of the spelling of the surname Benke have also been documented over time, such as Benk, Bencke, and Benkert. These variations may have arisen due to regional dialects or transcription errors in historical records.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Benke

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Benke.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Benke was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Benke has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Benke was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Benke, please contact us.

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