2000
#150,436
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 100
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Mettenbrink
A locational surname originating from a place called Mettenbrink.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 123 Americans carry the last name Mettenbrink. That puts it at #151,639 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,786,621 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mettenbrink 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
123
1 in 2,786,621
Census rank
#151,639
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
107
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 107 bearers of the surname Mettenbrink in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 151639th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mettenbrink, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.7%) and Hispanic (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mettenbrink
The surname Mettenbrink has its origins in the German language, and it is believed to have originated in the northern regions of the country, particularly in the area around the city of Bremen. The name is thought to have derived from a combination of the Middle Low German words "metten" and "brink," which translate to "meadow" and "edge" or "bank," respectively.
The earliest recorded mention of the name Mettenbrink can be traced back to the early 15th century, when it appeared in various documents and records from the region. One notable example is the appearance of the name in the Bremisches Urkundenbuch, a collection of historical documents from the city of Bremen, dated around 1420.
During the Middle Ages and the Renaissance period, the Mettenbrink surname was prevalent among families residing in the rural areas surrounding Bremen. It is believed that the name may have initially referred to a specific location or a piece of land situated on the edge of a meadow, which could have been the original homestead of the family bearing the name.
One of the earliest documented individuals with the surname Mettenbrink was Hinrich Mettenbrink, who was born in the village of Vegesack, near Bremen, in the late 15th century. Hinrich was a prominent farmer and landowner in the region, and his descendants continued to carry the family name for generations.
Another notable figure in the history of the Mettenbrink surname was Johann Mettenbrink, who lived in the 17th century. Johann was a respected merchant and trader in the city of Bremen, and his business dealings helped to establish the family's reputation and influence in the area.
In the 18th century, a branch of the Mettenbrink family migrated to the neighboring region of Lower Saxony, where they settled in the town of Celle. One of the most prominent members of this branch was Christian Mettenbrink, who was born in 1725 and became a successful lawyer and civil servant in the court of the Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg.
During the 19th century, the Mettenbrink name gained further recognition with the birth of Friedrich Mettenbrink in 1818. Friedrich was a renowned scholar and educator who made significant contributions to the field of philology and the study of ancient languages. He served as a professor at the University of Göttingen and published several influential works on Germanic linguistics.
Another noteworthy individual bearing the Mettenbrink surname was Wilhelm Mettenbrink, who was born in 1856 in the city of Hanover. Wilhelm was a prominent architect and urban planner, and his designs left a lasting impact on the cityscape of Hanover during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mettenbrink
Among Census respondents with the surname Mettenbrink, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.7%) and Hispanic (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Mettenbrink 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 Mettenbrink surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.6% · 98
- Two or more races4.7% · 5
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mettenbrink
Mettenbrink 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
#147,253
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
+12 bearers (+12.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 3,183 places
2020
#151,639
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
-5 bearers (-4.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 4,386 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #150,436 | 100 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #147,253 | 112 | 0.04 | +12 bearers (+12.0%) | Up 3,183 places |
| 2020 | #151,639 | 107 | 0.04 | -5 bearers (-4.5%) | Down 4,386 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 Mettenbrink 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 | #147,253 | #151,639 | -3.0% |
| Count | 112 | 107 | -4.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -10.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mettenbrink bearers went from 112 to 107 (-4.5% change). The surname moved down 4,386 positions in the national ranking, going from #147,253 to #151,639.
FAQ
Mettenbrink surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mettenbrink?
Name Census estimates that about 123 living Americans carry the surname Mettenbrink. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,786,621 residents.
How common is Mettenbrink?
Mettenbrink ranks #151,639 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 107 people with the surname Mettenbrink. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (123), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Mettenbrink.
Has Mettenbrink become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mettenbrink went from 112 recorded bearers to 107. That is a decrease of 5 (-4.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #147,253 to #151,639.
What does the Census say about the background of Mettenbrink?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mettenbrink, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.7%) and Hispanic (2.8%). 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 Mettenbrink in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.6% (98 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mettenbrink appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.6%), Two or More Races (4.7%), Hispanic (2.8%). 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 Mettenbrink (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 Mettenbrink mean?
A locational surname originating from a place called Mettenbrink. 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 Mettenbrink (0.04 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 common is the surname Mettenbrink?
See how common the surname Mettenbrink is on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.