2000
#121,058
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 132
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Genkin
A surname of Russian Jewish origin, likely an ornamental or diminutive form of a name.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 201 Americans carry the last name Genkin. That puts it at #108,023 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.06 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,705,245 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Genkin 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
201
1 in 1,705,245
Census rank
#108,023
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
175
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 175 bearers of the surname Genkin in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.06 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 108023rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Genkin, the largest self-reported group is White at 100.0%.
Origin
Meaning and origin of Genkin
The surname GENKIN originated in the Russian Empire during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. It is derived from the Russian word "генкин" (genkin), which is a diminutive form of the name "Генрих" (Genrikh), the Russian version of the Germanic name "Heinrich" or "Henry". This suggests that the name likely has German roots and may have been adopted by Russian Jews who were given or took on Russian-sounding surnames during this time period.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the GENKIN surname can be found in the Revision Lists, census-like records maintained by the Russian Imperial government, from the early 19th century. These lists include individuals with the surname GENKIN living in various cities and towns across the Russian Empire, such as Minsk, Vitebsk, and Mogilev (all now part of modern-day Belarus).
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, many individuals with the GENKIN surname emigrated from the Russian Empire to other parts of Europe and the Americas, fleeing persecution and seeking better opportunities. One notable example is Yakov Genkin (1858-1930), a Russian-born violinist and composer who settled in New York City and became a prominent figure in the city's classical music scene.
Another early bearer of the GENKIN surname was Mikhail Genkin (1874-1945), a Russian-born physician and medical researcher who made significant contributions to the study of infectious diseases. He worked at various hospitals and research institutes in Moscow and St. Petersburg before emigrating to the United States in the 1920s.
In the realm of literature, the GENKIN surname is associated with Yekaterina Genkin (1892-1968), a Russian-born writer and translator who lived and worked in Paris. Her works, written in Russian, explore themes of exile and the experiences of Russian émigrés in France.
Irvin Genkin (1905-1987), born in what is now Belarus, was a notable American architect who designed several prominent buildings in New York City, including the United Nations Headquarters complex and the Lever House skyscraper.
As the GENKIN surname spread across the globe, it has been adapted and transliterated in various ways, leading to alternative spellings such as Genken, Ghenkin, and Henkin. However, the roots of this name can be traced back to the Russian Empire and its Jewish population in the 19th century.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Genkin
Among Census respondents with the surname Genkin, the largest self-reported group is White at 100.0%.
The bar chart below shows how Genkin 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 Genkin surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White100.0% · 175
Timeline
Historical Census data for Genkin
Genkin 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
#107,134
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 166
+34 bearers (+25.8%)
Per 100,000 0.06
Rank movement Up 13,924 places
2020
#108,023
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 175
+9 bearers (+5.4%)
Per 100,000 0.06
Rank movement Down 889 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #121,058 | 132 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #107,134 | 166 | 0.06 | +34 bearers (+25.8%) | Up 13,924 places |
| 2020 | #108,023 | 175 | 0.06 | +9 bearers (+5.4%) | Down 889 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 Genkin 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 | #107,134 | #108,023 | -0.8% |
| Count | 166 | 175 | 5.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.06 | 0.06 | -2.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Genkin bearers went from 166 to 175 (+5.4% change). The surname moved down 889 positions in the national ranking, going from #107,134 to #108,023.
FAQ
Genkin surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Genkin?
Name Census estimates that about 201 living Americans carry the surname Genkin. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,705,245 residents.
How common is Genkin?
Genkin ranks #108,023 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.06 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 175 people with the surname Genkin. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (201), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.06 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.06 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 Genkin.
Has Genkin become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Genkin went from 166 recorded bearers to 175. That is an increase of 9 (+5.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #107,134 to #108,023.
What does the Census say about the background of Genkin?
Among Census respondents with the surname Genkin, the largest self-reported group is White at 100.0%. 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 Genkin in the 2020 Census, accounting for 100.0% (175 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Genkin appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (100.0%). 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 Genkin (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 Genkin mean?
A surname of Russian Jewish origin, likely an ornamental or diminutive form of a name. 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 Genkin (0.06 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 share the surname Genkin?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.