Find out how popular the last name Gohlke is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Gohlke.

Gohlke, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Gohlke surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Gohlke in America

Gohlke is the 32339th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Gohlke surname appeared 712 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Gohlke.

We can also compare 2010 data for Gohlke to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Gohlke

The surname Gohlke originated in Prussia, a historic region in modern-day Germany and Poland, during the 16th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old Prussian word "gole," meaning "field" or "meadow," suggesting that the name may have initially referred to someone who lived or worked in a field or open area.

Gohlke is thought to be a variant spelling of the German surname Göhlke, which has similar origins. The earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in church records and census documents from the region of Prussia in the late 1500s and early 1600s.

One notable historical reference to the Gohlke surname is in the records of the Prussian Army during the Napoleonic Wars of the early 19th century. Several soldiers with the surname Gohlke were documented as serving in various Prussian regiments during this period.

Among the earliest known individuals with the surname Gohlke was Hans Gohlke, born in Danzig (now Gdańsk, Poland) in 1612. He was a merchant and landowner in the region.

Another early bearer of the name was Johann Gohlke (1678-1745), a Lutheran pastor and theologian from Königsberg (now Kaliningrad, Russia).

In the 19th century, Friedrich Gohlke (1808-1882) was a German artist and painter known for his landscapes and historical scenes.

The composer and music educator Emil Gohlke (1842-1916) was a prominent figure in the cultural life of Leipzig, Germany, during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

One of the most notable individuals with the Gohlke surname was Walther Gohlke (1885-1945), a German author and journalist who served as a war correspondent during World War I and later wrote extensively about his experiences.

While the Gohlke surname has its roots in the Prussian region of Germany and Poland, it has since spread to other parts of Europe and the world through immigration and migration patterns.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Gohlke

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Gohlke.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Gohlke was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Gohlke has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Gohlke was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Gohlke, please contact us.

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