2000
#2,819
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 11,638
First available Census row
Per 100,000 4.31
Uncommon Last name
Brink
Derived from Middle English and Middle Low German, referring to someone living near a hillside or slope.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 13,123 Americans carry the last name Brink. That puts it at #3,058 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.83 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 26,119 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Brink 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Brink with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
13K
1 in 26,119
Census rank
#3,058
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
11K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 11,444 bearers of the surname Brink in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.83 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3058th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Brink, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (3.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Brink
The surname Brink is of Dutch origin, derived from the word "brink" meaning the edge or border of a field or village. It likely emerged as a descriptive surname referring to someone who lived near the edge or boundary of a town or settlement.
The earliest known records of the name date back to the 13th century in the Netherlands. One of the earliest documented instances is a man named Ghiselbrecht van den Brink, who was mentioned in a legal record from the city of Dordrecht in 1281.
Throughout the Middle Ages, the name appears in various Dutch historical documents and records, often with slight variations in spelling such as Brinck, Brincke, or Brincken. These variations reflect regional dialects and the inconsistent spelling conventions of the time.
In the 16th century, the name Brink gained prominence in the Dutch Republic. One notable figure was Pieter Brink, a successful merchant and city councilor in Amsterdam, who lived from 1525 to 1591.
The Brink surname also spread to other parts of Europe, particularly Germany, where it was sometimes rendered as Brinkmann or Brinckmann. A famous bearer of this variant was Johann Brinkmann, a German botanist and explorer who lived from 1766 to 1835.
As Dutch settlers migrated to other parts of the world, the surname Brink traveled with them. In the 17th century, several families with the name Brink were among the early Dutch settlers in South Africa, where the name remains relatively common today.
One notable South African bearer of the name was André Brink, a renowned novelist and academic who lived from 1935 to 2015. His works explored themes of apartheid and social injustice, earning him international acclaim.
In North America, the Brink surname was brought by Dutch immigrants to New Amsterdam (later New York) in the 17th century. One of the earliest recorded instances is Jacobus Brink, who was born in New Amsterdam in 1663.
Another prominent individual with the surname was Gerrit Brink, an American Revolutionary War soldier who fought in the Battle of Long Island in 1776. He later became a successful farmer and landowner in New York.
While the surname Brink has its roots in the Netherlands, it has since spread worldwide and been borne by individuals from various backgrounds and professions throughout history.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Brink
Among Census respondents with the surname Brink, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (3.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Brink 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 Brink surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.3% · 10,338
- Two or more races3.4% · 391
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 376
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.7% · 189
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 96
- Black or African American0.5% · 54
Timeline
Historical Census data for Brink
Brink 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
#2,989
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 11,982
+344 bearers (+3.0%)
Per 100,000 4.06
Rank movement Down 170 places
2020
#3,058
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 11,444
-538 bearers (-4.5%)
Per 100,000 3.83
Rank movement Down 69 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,819 | 11,638 | 4.31 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,989 | 11,982 | 4.06 | +344 bearers (+3.0%) | Down 170 places |
| 2020 | #3,058 | 11,444 | 3.83 | -538 bearers (-4.5%) | Down 69 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 Brink 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 | #2,989 | #3,058 | -2.3% |
| Count | 11,982 | 11,444 | -4.5% |
| Per 100K | 4.06 | 3.83 | -5.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Brink bearers went from 11,982 to 11,444 (-4.5% change). The surname moved down 69 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,989 to #3,058.
FAQ
Brink surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Brink?
Name Census estimates that about 13,123 living Americans carry the surname Brink. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 26,119 residents.
How common is Brink?
Brink ranks #3,058 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.83 per 100,000 residents, which is about 4 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 11,444 people with the surname Brink. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (13,123), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.83 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.83 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 4 of them to have the surname Brink.
Has Brink become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Brink went from 11,982 recorded bearers to 11,444. That is a decrease of 538 (-4.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,989 to #3,058.
What does the Census say about the background of Brink?
Among Census respondents with the surname Brink, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (3.3%). 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 Brink in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.3% (10,338 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Brink appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.3%), Two or More Races (3.4%), Hispanic (3.3%). 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 Brink (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 Brink mean?
Derived from Middle English and Middle Low German, referring to someone living near a hillside or slope. 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 Brink (3.83 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 Brink?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.