2010
#157,234
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 103
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.03
Very Rare Last name
Henicke
A variant spelling of the German surname "Heinicke" or "Hennicke", derived from a diminutive form of the male given name Heinrich.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 112 Americans carry the last name Henicke. That puts it at #156,269 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 3,060,307 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Henicke 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
112
1 in 3,060,307
Census rank
#156,269
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
98
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 98 bearers of the surname Henicke in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 156269th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Henicke, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.1%) and Two or More Races (3.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Henicke
The surname HENICKE has its origins in Germany, with records dating back to the 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the German word "Henne," which means "hen" or "chicken," and may have been an occupational name for someone who raised or sold poultry.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name HENICKE can be found in the Kirchenbücher (church records) of the city of Breslau, now known as Wrocław in modern-day Poland, where a certain Johannes Henicke was mentioned in 1587.
In the 17th century, the name HENICKE appeared in various historical documents throughout German-speaking regions, including the Holy Roman Empire. For example, a man named Hans Henicke was recorded as a landowner in the village of Niederdorfelden, near Frankfurt, in 1642.
During the 18th century, the HENICKE surname spread to other parts of Europe, with records showing individuals bearing this name in countries like Austria and Switzerland. One notable figure was Johann Gottfried Henicke (1767-1838), a German botanist and entomologist who wrote several works on insects and plants.
In the 19th century, the HENICKE surname found its way to the United States and other parts of the Americas through German immigration. One prominent individual was Carl Wilhelm Henicke (1820-1882), a German-American architect who designed several notable buildings in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Other notable individuals with the surname HENICKE include:
1. Johann Christian Henicke (1676-1730), a German Protestant theologian and philosopher.
2. Ernst Henicke (1856-1940), a German painter known for his landscapes and coastal scenes.
3. Friedrich Henicke (1902-1988), a German aviator and World War II fighter pilot.
4. Hans Henicke (1913-1992), a German football player who played for Hertha BSC in the 1930s.
5. Joachim Henicke (born 1957), a German journalist and author who has written extensively on political and social issues.
While the HENICKE surname may have started as an occupational name related to poultry farming, it has since evolved and spread across various regions, reflecting the rich cultural diversity and migration patterns of German-speaking communities over several centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Henicke
Among Census respondents with the surname Henicke, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.1%) and Two or More Races (3.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Henicke 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 Henicke surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.8% · 89
- Hispanic or Latino5.1% · 5
- Two or more races3.1% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Henicke
Henicke appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#156,269
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 98
-5 bearers (-4.9%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Up 965 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #157,234 | 103 | 0.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #156,269 | 98 | 0.03 | -5 bearers (-4.9%) | Up 965 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 Henicke 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 | #157,234 | #156,269 | 0.6% |
| Count | 103 | 98 | -4.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.03 | 9.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Henicke bearers went from 103 to 98 (-4.9% change). The surname moved up 965 positions in the national ranking, going from #157,234 to #156,269.
FAQ
Henicke surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Henicke?
Name Census estimates that about 112 living Americans carry the surname Henicke. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 3,060,307 residents.
How common is Henicke?
Henicke ranks #156,269 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 98 people with the surname Henicke. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (112), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Henicke.
Has Henicke become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Henicke went from 103 recorded bearers to 98. That is a decrease of 5 (-4.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #157,234 to #156,269.
What does the Census say about the background of Henicke?
Among Census respondents with the surname Henicke, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.1%) and Two or More Races (3.1%). 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 Henicke in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.8% (89 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Henicke appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.8%), Hispanic (5.1%), Two or More Races (3.1%). 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 Henicke (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 Henicke mean?
A variant spelling of the German surname "Heinicke" or "Hennicke", derived from a diminutive form of the male given name Heinrich. 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 Henicke (0.03 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 Henicke?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how common the surname Henicke is at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.