2000
#133,114
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Guetzke
A surname derived from a Germanic personal name of uncertain origin.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 134 Americans carry the last name Guetzke. That puts it at #144,270 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,557,868 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Guetzke 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
134
1 in 2,557,868
Census rank
#144,270
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
117
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 117 bearers of the surname Guetzke in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 144270th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Guetzke, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.9%. The next largest groups are Black (2.6%) and Two or More Races (1.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Guetzke
The surname GUETZKE is of German origin, originating in the northern regions of the country during the late medieval period. It is believed to be derived from the Old German word "gütze," which referred to a small watercourse or stream. This suggests that the name may have initially been used as a topographic surname, given to individuals who lived near or worked around such bodies of water.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the GUETZKE name can be found in the historical documents of the town of Lübeck, dating back to the 15th century. These records mention a certain Johann Guetzke, a merchant who traded in goods along the Baltic Sea routes. Another notable individual bearing this surname was Hans Guetzke, a skilled blacksmith who lived in the city of Bremen in the late 16th century.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the GUETZKE name spread across various regions of northern Germany, with several families settling in towns and villages along the Elbe and Weser rivers. One particularly prominent figure was Friedrich Guetzke, a respected theologian and author who was born in Magdeburg in 1732 and published several influential works on religious philosophy.
As the 19th century dawned, the GUETZKE surname started to appear in other parts of Europe, likely due to migration and the spread of trade networks. In the early 1800s, a family by the name of Guetzke established themselves in the city of Riga, which was then part of the Russian Empire. One of their descendants, Karl Guetzke, became a successful merchant and philanthropist, renowned for his charitable contributions to local orphanages and educational institutions.
Another notable figure was the German explorer and naturalist, Wilhelm Guetzke, who was born in 1852 in the town of Göttingen. He embarked on several expeditions to South America and the Caribbean, documenting the flora and fauna of these regions and making significant contributions to the field of natural history.
While the GUETZKE name may have originated as a topographic surname, it has since evolved and diversified, with individuals bearing this name excelling in various fields throughout history, from commerce and academia to exploration and philanthropy.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Guetzke
Among Census respondents with the surname Guetzke, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.9%. The next largest groups are Black (2.6%) and Two or More Races (1.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Guetzke 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 Guetzke surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.9% · 111
- Black or African American2.6% · 3
- Two or more races1.7% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Guetzke
Guetzke 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
#130,610
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 130
+13 bearers (+11.1%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 2,504 places
2020
#144,270
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
-13 bearers (-10.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 13,660 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #133,114 | 117 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #130,610 | 130 | 0.04 | +13 bearers (+11.1%) | Up 2,504 places |
| 2020 | #144,270 | 117 | 0.04 | -13 bearers (-10.0%) | Down 13,660 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 Guetzke 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 | #130,610 | #144,270 | -10.5% |
| Count | 130 | 117 | -10.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -2.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Guetzke bearers went from 130 to 117 (-10.0% change). The surname moved down 13,660 positions in the national ranking, going from #130,610 to #144,270.
FAQ
Guetzke surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Guetzke?
Name Census estimates that about 134 living Americans carry the surname Guetzke. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,557,868 residents.
How common is Guetzke?
Guetzke ranks #144,270 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 117 people with the surname Guetzke. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (134), 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 Guetzke.
Has Guetzke become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Guetzke went from 130 recorded bearers to 117. That is a decrease of 13 (-10.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #130,610 to #144,270.
What does the Census say about the background of Guetzke?
Among Census respondents with the surname Guetzke, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.9%. The next largest groups are Black (2.6%) and Two or More Races (1.7%). 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 Guetzke in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.9% (111 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Guetzke appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.9%), Black (2.6%), Two or More Races (1.7%). 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 Guetzke (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 Guetzke mean?
A surname derived from a Germanic personal name of uncertain origin. 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 Guetzke (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 are called Guetzke?
For a quick modern take, check how many people have the last name Guetzke on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.