2000
#127,948
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 123
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Burbeck
A name derived from a place name, possibly referring to someone from Burbage in Wiltshire.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 135 Americans carry the last name Burbeck. That puts it at #143,511 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,538,921 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Burbeck 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 Burbeck with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
135
1 in 2,538,921
Census rank
#143,511
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
118
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 118 bearers of the surname Burbeck in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 143511th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Burbeck, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (9.3%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Burbeck
The surname Burbeck is of English origin, derived from a place name in the county of Yorkshire. It likely comes from the Old English words 'burna' meaning a stream or small river, and 'bæc' meaning a ridge or hill. The name would have referred to someone who lived near a ridge or hill by a stream.
The earliest known record of the name dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as 'Burnebec'. This entry refers to a landowner in Yorkshire with this surname. Other early spellings from medieval records include Burrebek, Burbyk, and Burbeke.
In the 13th century, a Richard de Burbeck is mentioned in the Charters of Rievaulx Abbey in Yorkshire, dated around 1260. This suggests the name was well-established in the region by this time.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name was John Burbeck, born around 1420 in Yorkshire. He served as a soldier during the Wars of the Roses in the 15th century.
Another notable figure was William Burbeck, born in 1525 in Lincolnshire. He was a landowner and Member of Parliament for Grimsby during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.
In the 17th century, Thomas Burbeck, born in 1632 in Yorkshire, was a clergyman and author who wrote several religious texts.
Elizabeth Burbeck, born in 1745 in Lancashire, was a noted diarist whose journals provide insights into everyday life in 18th century England.
Moving into the 19th century, Charles Burbeck, born in 1812 in Yorkshire, was a pioneering railway engineer who worked on early rail projects in Britain.
The surname Burbeck has remained relatively uncommon throughout its history, but has maintained a presence primarily in the northern counties of England, particularly Yorkshire and Lancashire.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Burbeck
Among Census respondents with the surname Burbeck, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (9.3%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Burbeck 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 Burbeck surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White85.6% · 101
- Two or more races9.3% · 11
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.7% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Burbeck
Burbeck 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
#151,532
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 108
-15 bearers (-12.2%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 23,584 places
2020
#143,511
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 118
+10 bearers (+9.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 8,021 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #127,948 | 123 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #151,532 | 108 | 0.04 | -15 bearers (-12.2%) | Down 23,584 places |
| 2020 | #143,511 | 118 | 0.04 | +10 bearers (+9.3%) | Up 8,021 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 Burbeck 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 | #151,532 | #143,511 | 5.3% |
| Count | 108 | 118 | 9.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -1.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Burbeck bearers went from 108 to 118 (+9.3% change). The surname moved up 8,021 positions in the national ranking, going from #151,532 to #143,511.
FAQ
Burbeck surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Burbeck?
Name Census estimates that about 135 living Americans carry the surname Burbeck. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,538,921 residents.
How common is Burbeck?
Burbeck ranks #143,511 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 118 people with the surname Burbeck. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (135), 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 Burbeck.
Has Burbeck become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Burbeck went from 108 recorded bearers to 118. That is an increase of 10 (+9.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #151,532 to #143,511.
What does the Census say about the background of Burbeck?
Among Census respondents with the surname Burbeck, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (9.3%) and Hispanic (2.5%). 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 Burbeck in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.6% (101 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Burbeck appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (85.6%), Two or More Races (9.3%), Hispanic (2.5%). 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 Burbeck (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 Burbeck mean?
A name derived from a place name, possibly referring to someone from Burbage in Wiltshire. 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 Burbeck (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 Americans have the surname Burbeck?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.