2000
#3,179
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 10,359
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.84
Uncommon Last name
Lemke
A surname of German and Polish origin, derived from the word "lemke," meaning a person from Lemkivshchyna, Ukraine.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 11,432 Americans carry the last name Lemke. That puts it at #3,493 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.34 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 29,982 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Lemke 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
11K
1 in 29,982
Census rank
#3,493
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
10.0K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 9,969 bearers of the surname Lemke in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.34 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3493rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Lemke, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.0%) and Two or More Races (2.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Lemke
The surname Lemke has its origins in Germany, where it first emerged during the medieval period. It is believed to have derived from the Germanic word "lembeki," which means "lime tree." This suggests that the name may have been initially bestowed upon someone who lived near or worked with lime trees.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Lemke surname can be found in the Bременник, a 14th-century Russian chronicle, where a merchant named Heinrich Lemke is mentioned in an entry from 1382. This indicates that the name had already spread beyond the borders of Germany by that time.
In the 16th century, the name appears in various records and documents across central and northern Europe. For example, in 1542, a man named Joachim Lemke is listed as a resident of the town of Aschersleben in present-day Saxony-Anhalt, Germany.
Over the centuries, the Lemke surname has been associated with several notable individuals. One such person was Christoph Lemke (1589-1659), a German composer and organist who served as the court Kapellmeister in Wolfenbüttel, Lower Saxony.
Another prominent figure was Johann Gottfried Lemke (1717-1801), a German theologian and educator who served as the rector of the Thomasschule in Leipzig, where he taught notable figures like Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.
In the 19th century, Carl Lemke (1837-1904) gained recognition as a German landscape painter known for his depictions of the North German countryside and coastlines.
The surname Lemke has also been associated with various place names and their older spellings. For instance, the village of Lemkendorf in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany, is believed to have derived its name from the Lemke surname.
While the Lemke name has its roots in Germany, it has since spread to other parts of the world, particularly through emigration. Some notable individuals with this surname include Gustav Lemke (1801-1884), a German-American artist and lithographer who settled in New York City; and Kurt Lemke (1929-2013), a German politician who served as a member of the Bundestag, the German federal parliament.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lemke
Among Census respondents with the surname Lemke, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.0%) and Two or More Races (2.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Lemke 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 Lemke surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.7% · 9,239
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 302
- Two or more races2.9% · 290
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 67
- Black or African American0.4% · 38
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 33
Timeline
Historical Census data for Lemke
Lemke 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
#3,406
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 10,501
+142 bearers (+1.4%)
Per 100,000 3.56
Rank movement Down 227 places
2020
#3,493
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,969
-532 bearers (-5.1%)
Per 100,000 3.34
Rank movement Down 87 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,179 | 10,359 | 3.84 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,406 | 10,501 | 3.56 | +142 bearers (+1.4%) | Down 227 places |
| 2020 | #3,493 | 9,969 | 3.34 | -532 bearers (-5.1%) | Down 87 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 Lemke 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 | #3,406 | #3,493 | -2.6% |
| Count | 10,501 | 9,969 | -5.1% |
| Per 100K | 3.56 | 3.34 | -6.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Lemke bearers went from 10,501 to 9,969 (-5.1% change). The surname moved down 87 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,406 to #3,493.
FAQ
Lemke surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Lemke?
Name Census estimates that about 11,432 living Americans carry the surname Lemke. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 29,982 residents.
How common is Lemke?
Lemke ranks #3,493 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.34 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 9,969 people with the surname Lemke. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (11,432), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.34 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.34 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Lemke.
Has Lemke become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Lemke went from 10,501 recorded bearers to 9,969. That is a decrease of 532 (-5.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,406 to #3,493.
What does the Census say about the background of Lemke?
Among Census respondents with the surname Lemke, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.0%) and Two or More Races (2.9%). 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 Lemke in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.7% (9,239 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Lemke appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.7%), Hispanic (3.0%), Two or More Races (2.9%). 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 Lemke (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 Lemke mean?
A surname of German and Polish origin, derived from the word "lemke," meaning a person from Lemkivshchyna, Ukraine. 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 Lemke (3.34 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 surname Lemke?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.