2010
#138,304
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 121
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Mobeck
An English surname derived from a locational place name in England or Germany.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 123 Americans carry the last name Mobeck. 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 Mobeck 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 Mobeck 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 Mobeck, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.2%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (9.3%) and Two or More Races (4.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mobeck
The surname "MOBECK" is believed to have its origins in the Scandinavian region, specifically in Sweden or Norway. This name likely emerged during the medieval period, around the 11th or 12th century. It is thought to be derived from the Old Norse words "mo" (meaning "sandy ground" or "heath") and "bekk" (meaning "stream" or "brook"), which together suggest a connection to a geographic location near a sandy stream or brook.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name MOBECK can be found in the Diplomatarium Norvegicum, a collection of medieval Norwegian diplomatic documents. In a document dated 1263, a man named Thorstein Mobeck is mentioned as a witness to a land transaction in the region of Trondheim.
During the 13th and 14th centuries, the name MOBECK appeared in various records and chronicles across Scandinavia. For example, in the Icelandic Annals from the year 1310, there is a reference to a farmer named Olaf Mobeck who lived in the region of Skagafjörður in northern Iceland.
In the 15th century, the name MOBECK began to spread beyond Scandinavia as individuals with this surname migrated to other parts of Europe. One notable bearer of this name was Hans Mobeck, a German merchant who was born in Hamburg in 1482 and traded extensively with Scandinavian countries.
As the centuries progressed, the name MOBECK continued to be found in various regions and contexts. In the 17th century, a Swedish military officer named Erik Mobeck (1624-1698) served in the Thirty Years' War and later became the governor of Örebro County.
Another prominent figure with the surname MOBECK was the Norwegian poet and playwright Henrik Mobeck (1788-1856), who is known for his works in the Romantic tradition and his contributions to the development of Norwegian literature.
In the 19th century, the MOBECK surname also appeared in the United States, likely brought by Scandinavian immigrants. One notable American with this name was John Mobeck (1832-1911), a businessman and politician from Wisconsin who served as a member of the state's Senate.
While the surname MOBECK is relatively uncommon today, it remains a part of the rich tapestry of names that reflect the diverse cultural and geographic influences that have shaped various regions over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mobeck
Among Census respondents with the surname Mobeck, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.2%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (9.3%) and Two or More Races (4.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Mobeck 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 Mobeck surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White83.2% · 89
- American Indian and Alaska Native9.3% · 10
- Two or more races4.7% · 5
- Hispanic or Latino1.9% · 2
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mobeck
Mobeck appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#151,639
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
-14 bearers (-11.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 13,335 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #138,304 | 121 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #151,639 | 107 | 0.04 | -14 bearers (-11.6%) | Down 13,335 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 Mobeck 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 | #138,304 | #151,639 | -9.6% |
| Count | 121 | 107 | -11.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -10.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mobeck bearers went from 121 to 107 (-11.6% change). The surname moved down 13,335 positions in the national ranking, going from #138,304 to #151,639.
FAQ
Mobeck surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mobeck?
Name Census estimates that about 123 living Americans carry the surname Mobeck. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,786,621 residents.
How common is Mobeck?
Mobeck 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 Mobeck. 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 Mobeck.
Has Mobeck become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mobeck went from 121 recorded bearers to 107. That is a decrease of 14 (-11.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #138,304 to #151,639.
What does the Census say about the background of Mobeck?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mobeck, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.2%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (9.3%) and Two or More Races (4.7%). 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 Mobeck in the 2020 Census, accounting for 83.2% (89 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mobeck appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (83.2%), American Indian/Alaska Native (9.3%), Two or More Races (4.7%). 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 Mobeck (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 Mobeck mean?
An English surname derived from a locational place name in England or Germany. 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 Mobeck (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 many people are called Mobeck?
If you just want to know how many people have the surname Mobeck, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.