2000
#141,788
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 108
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Deke
A Dutch surname derived from the word "deken" meaning deacon or a church officer.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 123 Americans carry the last name Deke. That puts it at #151,639 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,786,621 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Deke 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
123
1 in 2,786,621
Census rank
#151,639
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
107
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 107 bearers of the surname Deke in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 151639th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Deke, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.9%. The next largest groups are Black (6.5%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Deke
The surname DEKE is of Dutch origin, believed to have emerged in the 16th century in the Netherlands. It is likely derived from the Dutch word "dijk," meaning "dike" or "embankment," suggesting a connection to areas near dikes or waterways.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name DEKE can be found in the Dutch census records from the city of Leiden in the late 1500s, where several families with this surname resided. The name was also present in other Dutch cities like Amsterdam and Rotterdam during this period.
In the 17th century, the name DEKE appeared in various Dutch colonial records, indicating that some bearers of this surname might have migrated to the Dutch colonies in the Americas and other parts of the world during that time.
A notable individual with the surname DEKE from the 17th century was Jan Deke (1620-1678), a Dutch merchant and ship owner who played a significant role in the establishment of the Dutch West India Company's trading operations in the Caribbean.
As the Dutch influence spread across the globe, the name DEKE found its way into other regions. For instance, in the late 18th century, there are records of a family with the surname DEKE living in the Cape Colony of South Africa, which was then under Dutch rule.
Another prominent figure with the DEKE surname was Willem Deke (1789-1856), a Dutch naval officer and explorer who led several expeditions to the East Indies and contributed to the mapping of the Indonesian archipelago.
In the 19th century, the name DEKE appeared in various parts of Europe, including Germany and Belgium, likely due to migration and intermarriage between the Dutch and neighboring populations.
One of the most well-known individuals with the DEKE surname was the German philosopher and author, Friedrich Deke (1835-1901), whose works explored the intersection of philosophy, ethics, and religion.
As the 20th century approached, the surname DEKE continued to be found in various parts of the world, reflecting the global diaspora of Dutch and European populations.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Deke
Among Census respondents with the surname Deke, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.9%. The next largest groups are Black (6.5%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Deke 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 Deke surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.9% · 94
- Black or African American6.5% · 7
- Two or more races2.8% · 3
- Hispanic or Latino1.9% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Deke
Deke 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
#152,628
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
-1 bearers (-0.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 10,840 places
2020
#151,639
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
+0 bearers (+0.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 989 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #141,788 | 108 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #152,628 | 107 | 0.04 | -1 bearers (-0.9%) | Down 10,840 places |
| 2020 | #151,639 | 107 | 0.04 | +0 bearers (+0.0%) | Up 989 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 Deke 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 | #152,628 | #151,639 | 0.6% |
| Count | 107 | 107 | 0.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -10.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Deke bearers went from 107 to 107 (+0.0% change). The surname moved up 989 positions in the national ranking, going from #152,628 to #151,639.
FAQ
Deke surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Deke?
Name Census estimates that about 123 living Americans carry the surname Deke. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,786,621 residents.
How common is Deke?
Deke ranks #151,639 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 107 people with the surname Deke. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (123), 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 Deke.
Has Deke become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Deke went from 107 recorded bearers to 107. That is an increase of 0 (+0.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #152,628 to #151,639.
What does the Census say about the background of Deke?
Among Census respondents with the surname Deke, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.9%. The next largest groups are Black (6.5%) and Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Deke in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.9% (94 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Deke appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.9%), Black (6.5%), Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Deke (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 Deke mean?
A Dutch surname derived from the word "deken" meaning deacon or a church officer. 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 Deke (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 last name Deke?
See how many people have the last name Deke on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.