2000
#138,741
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Haefke
A surname derived from a Germanic personal name meaning "little hare".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 128 Americans carry the last name Haefke. That puts it at #147,954 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,677,768 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Haefke 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
128
1 in 2,677,768
Census rank
#147,954
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
112
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 112 bearers of the surname Haefke in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 147954th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Haefke, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (8.0%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Haefke
The surname HAEFKE is believed to have originated from the Low German regions of northern Germany and the Netherlands. It likely emerged during the Middle Ages, around the 13th or 14th century. The name is thought to be derived from the Old Low German word "havik," meaning "hawk" or "falcon."
One of the earliest recorded instances of the HAEFKE surname can be found in a document from the city of Hamburg, dated 1387, which mentions a person named Hinrich Haefke. This suggests that the name was already established in the region by that time. There are also records of individuals with similar spellings, such as Haefken and Havekin, in various northern German towns and cities during the same period.
The HAEFKE name is closely associated with the region of Westphalia, particularly the town of Telgte, where it appears in church records from the 16th century. In 1521, a man named Johann Haefke is listed as a resident of Telgte. This town was known for its falconry traditions, which could explain the origin of the name and its connection to hawks or falcons.
As the name spread across northern Germany and the Low Countries, it underwent various spelling variations, such as Häfke, Haevke, and Hävke. These variations reflect the regional dialects and language differences within the broader Low German linguistic region.
One notable figure bearing the HAEFKE surname was Johannes Haefke (1610-1687), a Lutheran theologian and author from Lübeck, Germany. He wrote several influential works on theology and church history during the 17th century.
Another individual of note was Gerhard Haefke (1841-1915), a German painter and illustrator from Schleswig-Holstein. He is known for his realistic depictions of rural life and landscapes in northern Germany.
In the Netherlands, the name appeared in records from the 16th century onwards, often spelled as "Haefken" or "Havicke." One prominent Dutch bearer of the name was Willem Haefken (1525-1589), a Protestant theologian and reformer from Utrecht.
Moving into the 19th century, Johann Friedrich Haefke (1801-1879) was a German physician and botanist who made significant contributions to the study of plant taxonomy and the flora of northern Germany.
Another notable figure was Karl Haefke (1871-1949), a German architect and urban planner who designed several notable buildings and urban development projects in Berlin during the early 20th century.
While the HAEFKE surname has its roots in northern Germany and the Low Countries, it has since spread to other parts of Europe and beyond, carried by migration and diaspora communities over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Haefke
Among Census respondents with the surname Haefke, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (8.0%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Haefke 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 Haefke surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.3% · 100
- Two or more races8.0% · 9
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.8% · 2
- Hispanic or Latino0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Haefke
Haefke 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
#132,206
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 128
+17 bearers (+15.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 6,535 places
2020
#147,954
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
-16 bearers (-12.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 15,748 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #138,741 | 111 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #132,206 | 128 | 0.04 | +17 bearers (+15.3%) | Up 6,535 places |
| 2020 | #147,954 | 112 | 0.04 | -16 bearers (-12.5%) | Down 15,748 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 Haefke 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 | #132,206 | #147,954 | -11.9% |
| Count | 128 | 112 | -12.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -6.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Haefke bearers went from 128 to 112 (-12.5% change). The surname moved down 15,748 positions in the national ranking, going from #132,206 to #147,954.
FAQ
Haefke surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Haefke?
Name Census estimates that about 128 living Americans carry the surname Haefke. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,677,768 residents.
How common is Haefke?
Haefke ranks #147,954 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 112 people with the surname Haefke. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (128), 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 Haefke.
Has Haefke become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Haefke went from 128 recorded bearers to 112. That is a decrease of 16 (-12.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #132,206 to #147,954.
What does the Census say about the background of Haefke?
Among Census respondents with the surname Haefke, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (8.0%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.8%). 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 Haefke in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.3% (100 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Haefke appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.3%), Two or More Races (8.0%), Asian/Pacific Islander (1.8%). 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 Haefke (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 Haefke mean?
A surname derived from a Germanic personal name meaning "little hare". 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 Haefke (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 share the surname Haefke?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.