2000
#5,316
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,033
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.24
Rare Last name
Hollenbeck
A surname referring to someone who lived near a holly-lined stream or beck.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,226 Americans carry the last name Hollenbeck. That puts it at #6,078 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.82 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 55,052 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hollenbeck 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
6.2K
1 in 55,052
Census rank
#6,078
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,429 bearers of the surname Hollenbeck in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.82 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6078th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hollenbeck, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.7%) and Hispanic (3.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hollenbeck
The surname Hollenbeck has its origins in Germany, dating back to the 16th century. It is derived from the German words "holen" meaning "to fetch" and "beck" meaning "stream" or "brook." The name is believed to have originated in the Rhineland region, where it was likely given to someone who lived near a stream or brook used for fetching water.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Hollenbeck can be found in the "Kirchenbücher," or church records, of the town of Köln (Cologne) in the late 1500s. The name was also documented in other regions of Germany, such as the Palatinate, during the same time period.
In the 17th century, the Hollenbeck family spread across Europe, with some members settling in the Netherlands and later emigrating to the Dutch colonies in North America. One notable figure was Jacob Hollenbeck, who was born in the Netherlands in 1668 and later became one of the first settlers in the Dutch colony of New Netherland (present-day New York).
As the Hollenbeck family continued to grow and disperse throughout the centuries, variations of the spelling emerged, including Hollenbeck, Holenbeck, Hollenbacher, and Hollenbach. Some of these variations were likely influenced by the various regional dialects in Germany and the Netherlands.
Among the notable individuals with the surname Hollenbeck throughout history are:
1. Johann Philipp Hollenbeck (1720-1798), a German composer and organist from the city of Mannheim.
2. Caspar Hollenbeck (1742-1813), a German-American farmer and soldier who fought in the American Revolutionary War.
3. William Hollenbeck (1805-1870), an American politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Pennsylvania.
4. Gertrude Hollenbeck (1856-1932), an American educator and women's rights activist from New York.
5. Henry Hollenbeck (1880-1957), an American baseball player who played in the Major Leagues for several teams, including the Detroit Tigers and the New York Giants.
The surname Hollenbeck has a rich history spanning several centuries and countries, with its origins rooted in the German language and the Rhineland region. While the name has evolved over time, it has maintained a presence in various fields, from music and politics to sports and activism.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hollenbeck
Among Census respondents with the surname Hollenbeck, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.7%) and Hispanic (3.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Hollenbeck 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 Hollenbeck surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.3% · 4,954
- Two or more races3.7% · 200
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 178
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 38
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 35
- Black or African American0.4% · 24
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hollenbeck
Hollenbeck 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
#5,736
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,043
+10 bearers (+0.2%)
Per 100,000 2.05
Rank movement Down 420 places
2020
#6,078
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,429
-614 bearers (-10.2%)
Per 100,000 1.82
Rank movement Down 342 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,316 | 6,033 | 2.24 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,736 | 6,043 | 2.05 | +10 bearers (+0.2%) | Down 420 places |
| 2020 | #6,078 | 5,429 | 1.82 | -614 bearers (-10.2%) | Down 342 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 Hollenbeck 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 | #5,736 | #6,078 | -6.0% |
| Count | 6,043 | 5,429 | -10.2% |
| Per 100K | 2.05 | 1.82 | -11.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hollenbeck bearers went from 6,043 to 5,429 (-10.2% change). The surname moved down 342 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,736 to #6,078.
FAQ
Hollenbeck surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hollenbeck?
Name Census estimates that about 6,226 living Americans carry the surname Hollenbeck. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 55,052 residents.
How common is Hollenbeck?
Hollenbeck ranks #6,078 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.82 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,429 people with the surname Hollenbeck. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,226), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.82 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.82 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Hollenbeck.
Has Hollenbeck become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hollenbeck went from 6,043 recorded bearers to 5,429. That is a decrease of 614 (-10.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,736 to #6,078.
What does the Census say about the background of Hollenbeck?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hollenbeck, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.7%) and Hispanic (3.3%). 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 Hollenbeck in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.3% (4,954 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hollenbeck appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.3%), Two or More Races (3.7%), Hispanic (3.3%). 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 Hollenbeck (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 Hollenbeck mean?
A surname referring to someone who lived near a holly-lined stream or beck. 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 Hollenbeck (1.82 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 have the last name Hollenbeck?
You can see how many people have the last name Hollenbeck on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.