Jonke last name popularity, history, and meaning

Find out how popular the last name Jonke is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Jonke.

Meaning of Jonke

A German surname derived from Johanne, a variant of Johann, meaning 'God is gracious'.

Jonke, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Jonke surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Jonke in America

Jonke is the 71042nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Jonke surname appeared 275 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Jonke.

We can also compare 2010 data for Jonke to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 71042 73154 -2.93%
Count 275 247 10.73%
Proportion per 100k 0.09 0.09 0.00%

The history of the last name Jonke

The surname Jonke originates from the Netherlands and is believed to have first appeared in the 16th century. It is thought to have derived from the Dutch word "jonker," which means "young nobleman" or "young squire." This suggests that the name may have been given to individuals who held a position of some importance or authority within Dutch society during that time period.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the Jonke surname can be found in a Dutch census document from the city of Amsterdam, dated 1598. This document lists a certain Adriaen Jonke, who was a merchant and landowner in the city. It is likely that this individual's ancestors may have been among the first to bear the Jonke name.

In the 17th century, the Jonke name appeared in several historical records from the Dutch province of Friesland. A notable example is Pieter Jonke, who was born in 1652 in the town of Leeuwarden and served as a magistrate and member of the local council for many years.

As the Netherlands expanded its colonial interests in the 17th and 18th centuries, the Jonke name began to spread to other parts of the world. In 1687, a man named Jan Jonke was among the first Dutch settlers to arrive in the Cape Colony of South Africa, which was then under the control of the Dutch East India Company.

Another notable figure in the history of the Jonke surname is Gerrit Jonke, who was born in 1723 in the Dutch city of Utrecht. Jonke was a prominent merchant and shipowner, and played a significant role in the development of the Dutch East Indies trade during the 18th century.

In more recent times, the Jonke name has been associated with several individuals who have achieved prominence in various fields. One such individual is the Austrian writer and playwright Gert Jonke, who was born in 1946 and is considered one of the most important literary figures of the late 20th century in his country.

Overall, the Jonke surname has a rich history that can be traced back to the Netherlands in the 16th century. While it may have originated as a name associated with nobility or authority, it has since become a widespread surname found in various parts of the world, reflecting the Dutch people's global influence and migration patterns over the centuries.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Jonke

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Jonke.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

  1. White only
  2. Black only
  3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
  4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
  5. Hispanic
  6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Jonke was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 94.55% 260
Non-Hispanic Black Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 0.00% 0
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.00% 0
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races (S)% (S)
Hispanic Origin 4.73% 13

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Jonke has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 94.55% 97.17% -2.73%
Black (S)% (S)% (S)%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.00% (S)% (S)%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.00% (S)% (S)%
Two or More Races (S)% (S)% (S)%
Hispanic 4.73% (S)% (S)%

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Jonke was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Jonke, please contact us.

Reference this page

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"Jonke last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on November 22, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/jonke-surname-popularity/.

"Jonke last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/jonke-surname-popularity/. Accessed 22 November, 2024

Jonke last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/jonke-surname-popularity/.

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