2000
#128,797
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 122
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Bodecker
A surname derived from an old German occupational term for a messenger or herald.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 139 Americans carry the last name Bodecker. That puts it at #141,309 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,465,859 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Bodecker 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
139
1 in 2,465,859
Census rank
#141,309
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
121
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 121 bearers of the surname Bodecker in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 141309th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Bodecker, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.2%. The next largest groups are Black (2.5%) and Two or More Races (1.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Bodecker
The surname Bodecker is of German origin, first appearing in records from the late 15th century. It is derived from the Middle Low German word "bodeken," which means "little messenger" or "messenger boy." This suggests that the name likely originated as an occupational surname for a messenger or courier.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Bodecker name is found in the town records of Lübeck, Germany, dating back to 1487. These records mention a man named Hinrick Bodecker, who was a member of the merchant guild.
By the 16th century, the name had spread to other regions of northern Germany, including Bremen and Hamburg. In 1592, a man named Hans Bodecker was listed as a resident of Hamburg in the city's tax records.
The Bodecker name also appears in historical documents from the Netherlands, likely carried there by German immigrants or traders. In 1624, a man named Jan Bodecker was mentioned in the archives of the city of Leiden, where he worked as a weaver.
A notable bearer of the Bodecker name was Johann Bodecker (1592-1659), a German theologian and author who served as a Protestant minister in Cologne. He wrote several religious treatises and commentaries on biblical texts.
Another prominent figure with this surname was Friedrich Bodecker (1769-1846), a German jurist and legal scholar. He was a professor of law at the University of Göttingen and authored several works on civil and criminal law.
In the 19th century, the Bodecker name began to appear in records from other parts of Europe, likely due to migration and immigration. For example, in 1842, a man named Hans Bodecker was listed as a resident of the town of Ekenäs, Finland.
Other notable individuals with the Bodecker surname include Karl Bodecker (1861-1928), a German engineer and inventor who patented several improvements in steam engine technology, and Otto Bodecker (1877-1938), a German-American dentist and pioneer in the field of oral hygiene.
Throughout its history, the Bodecker name has also been spelled in various ways, such as Bodeker, Bodecher, and Bodiker, reflecting regional linguistic variations and differences in record-keeping practices over time.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Bodecker
Among Census respondents with the surname Bodecker, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.2%. The next largest groups are Black (2.5%) and Two or More Races (1.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Bodecker 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 Bodecker surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.2% · 114
- Black or African American2.5% · 3
- Two or more races1.7% · 2
- Hispanic or Latino0.8% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Bodecker
Bodecker 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
#138,304
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 121
-1 bearers (-0.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 9,507 places
2020
#141,309
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 121
+0 bearers (+0.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 3,005 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #128,797 | 122 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #138,304 | 121 | 0.04 | -1 bearers (-0.8%) | Down 9,507 places |
| 2020 | #141,309 | 121 | 0.04 | +0 bearers (+0.0%) | Down 3,005 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 Bodecker 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 | #138,304 | #141,309 | -2.2% |
| Count | 121 | 121 | 0.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | 1.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Bodecker bearers went from 121 to 121 (+0.0% change). The surname moved down 3,005 positions in the national ranking, going from #138,304 to #141,309.
FAQ
Bodecker surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Bodecker?
Name Census estimates that about 139 living Americans carry the surname Bodecker. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,465,859 residents.
How common is Bodecker?
Bodecker ranks #141,309 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 121 people with the surname Bodecker. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (139), 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 Bodecker.
Has Bodecker become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Bodecker went from 121 recorded bearers to 121. That is an increase of 0 (+0.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #138,304 to #141,309.
What does the Census say about the background of Bodecker?
Among Census respondents with the surname Bodecker, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.2%. The next largest groups are Black (2.5%) and Two or More Races (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 Bodecker in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.2% (114 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Bodecker appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.2%), Black (2.5%), Two or More Races (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 Bodecker (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 Bodecker mean?
A surname derived from an old German occupational term for a messenger or herald. 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 Bodecker (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 common is the surname Bodecker?
If you just want to know how common the surname Bodecker is, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.