2000
#8,942
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,362
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.25
Rare Last name
Hornbeck
A locational surname referring to someone from a place called Hornbeck, derived from Old English meaning "horn stream."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,284 Americans carry the last name Hornbeck. That puts it at #10,655 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.96 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 104,371 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hornbeck 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
3.3K
1 in 104,371
Census rank
#10,655
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,864 bearers of the surname Hornbeck in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.96 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10655th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hornbeck, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.6%) and Hispanic (2.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hornbeck
The surname Hornbeck has its roots in the German language and is believed to have originated in the regions of Germany and the Netherlands during the Middle Ages. The name is derived from the Old German words "horn" meaning "horn" and "beck" meaning "brook" or "stream." It is likely that the name was originally a descriptive one, referring to a person who lived near a small stream or brook with a bend resembling a horn.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Hornbeck surname can be found in the German city of Cologne in the 13th century. A document from 1274 mentions a "Johannes von Hornbeck," suggesting that the name was already established in the region at that time. In the Netherlands, the name is sometimes spelled as "Hornbek" or "Hornbeek," reflecting the regional variations in language and dialect.
The Hornbeck surname also appears in historical records from the Low Countries, particularly in the areas that are now part of Belgium and the Netherlands. During the 16th and 17th centuries, many Hornbecks were among the Protestant Reformers who fled religious persecution and sought refuge in nearby regions or in the Americas.
One notable individual bearing the Hornbeck surname was Johannes Hornbeck (1625-1666), a Dutch theologian and professor at the University of Leiden. He was a prominent figure in the Reformed Church and authored several influential works on theology and doctrine.
Another noteworthy Hornbeck was Philipp Hornbeck (1638-1696), a German composer and organist who served at the court of the Elector Palatine in Heidelberg. His compositions for organ and harpsichord were highly regarded during his lifetime.
In the United States, the Hornbeck surname can be traced back to the early colonial period, with several immigrants arriving from Germany and the Netherlands in the 17th and 18th centuries. One of the earliest recorded instances is that of Adam Hornbeck, who settled in Pennsylvania in the early 1700s.
Jacob Hornbeck (1751-1832) was a soldier and farmer from Pennsylvania who served in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. He fought in several major battles, including the Battle of Brandywine and the Battle of Germantown.
Another prominent figure was John Hornbeck (1820-1895), a businessman and politician from Ohio who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives in the late 19th century.
While the Hornbeck surname has its origins in Europe, it has since spread across the globe, with descendants bearing the name found in various countries and cultures. Despite its widespread distribution, the name retains its connection to its historical roots in the linguistic and geographic regions of Germany and the Netherlands.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hornbeck
Among Census respondents with the surname Hornbeck, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.6%) and Hispanic (2.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Hornbeck 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 Hornbeck surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.8% · 2,571
- Two or more races4.6% · 131
- Hispanic or Latino2.3% · 65
- Black or African American1.8% · 51
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 30
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 16
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hornbeck
Hornbeck 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
#10,046
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,206
-156 bearers (-4.6%)
Per 100,000 1.09
Rank movement Down 1,104 places
2020
#10,655
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,864
-342 bearers (-10.7%)
Per 100,000 0.96
Rank movement Down 609 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,942 | 3,362 | 1.25 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,046 | 3,206 | 1.09 | -156 bearers (-4.6%) | Down 1,104 places |
| 2020 | #10,655 | 2,864 | 0.96 | -342 bearers (-10.7%) | Down 609 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 Hornbeck 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 | #10,046 | #10,655 | -6.1% |
| Count | 3,206 | 2,864 | -10.7% |
| Per 100K | 1.09 | 0.96 | -12.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hornbeck bearers went from 3,206 to 2,864 (-10.7% change). The surname moved down 609 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,046 to #10,655.
FAQ
Hornbeck surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hornbeck?
Name Census estimates that about 3,284 living Americans carry the surname Hornbeck. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 104,371 residents.
How common is Hornbeck?
Hornbeck ranks #10,655 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.96 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,864 people with the surname Hornbeck. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,284), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.96 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.96 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Hornbeck.
Has Hornbeck become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hornbeck went from 3,206 recorded bearers to 2,864. That is a decrease of 342 (-10.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,046 to #10,655.
What does the Census say about the background of Hornbeck?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hornbeck, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.6%) and Hispanic (2.3%). 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 Hornbeck in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.8% (2,571 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hornbeck appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.8%), Two or More Races (4.6%), Hispanic (2.3%). 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 Hornbeck (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 Hornbeck mean?
A locational surname referring to someone from a place called Hornbeck, derived from Old English meaning "horn stream." 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 Hornbeck (0.96 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 Americans have the surname Hornbeck?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.