2000
#105,905
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 156
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.06
Very Rare Last name
Mollenkamp
A German habitational surname derived from the name of a place called Mollenkampen.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 186 Americans carry the last name Mollenkamp. That puts it at #114,613 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.05 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,842,765 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mollenkamp 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
186
1 in 1,842,765
Census rank
#114,613
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
162
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 162 bearers of the surname Mollenkamp in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.05 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 114613th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mollenkamp, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mollenkamp
The surname Mollenkamp originated in Germany, likely surfacing sometime in the late 16th or early 17th century. It is derived from the German words "Mollen" meaning mill and "Kamp" meaning field or meadow. This suggests the name may have referred to someone who lived near or worked at a mill in a field or meadow area.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in church records from the town of Essen in the Ruhr region of Germany, where a Johann Mollenkamp is listed as being born in 1632. There are also mentions of the name in old tax records and property deeds from towns in the nearby Münsterland region during the 1600s.
While no definitive link has been established, some genealogists believe the name may be related to the old Germanic surname Mühlenkamp, which has a similar meaning and spelling. There are examples of this variant appearing in records from areas like Lower Saxony as early as the 1500s.
A notable early bearer of the Mollenkamp name was Ludger Mollenkamp, a merchant and landowner who lived in Münster from around 1670 to 1742. Records show he owned several mills and significant tracts of farmland in the region.
Another early example is Johanna Mollenkamp, born around 1705, who is mentioned in church documents from the town of Borghorst as being a prolific textile weaver whose wares were in high demand.
Moving into the 1800s, the name spread more widely as people migrated within Germany and abroad. Carl Mollenkamp (1818-1896) was a respected magistrate and civic leader who served for many years in the city government of Cologne.
As the name traveled, spelling variations like Mollenkampe and Mollenkamps began appearing in some regions. For instance, Johannes Mollenkampe (1835-1912) was a noted theologian and professor at the University of Greifswald in modern-day Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.
One of the earliest known immigrants to bring the name to America was Heinrich Mollenkamp, who arrived from Westphalia in 1849 and eventually settled in Cincinnati, Ohio where he worked as a miller.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mollenkamp
Among Census respondents with the surname Mollenkamp, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Mollenkamp 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 Mollenkamp surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.4% · 148
- Two or more races5.6% · 9
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.9% · 3
- Black or African American0.6% · 1
- Hispanic or Latino0.6% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mollenkamp
Mollenkamp 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
#109,758
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 161
+5 bearers (+3.2%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Down 3,853 places
2020
#114,613
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 162
+1 bearers (+0.6%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Down 4,855 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #105,905 | 156 | 0.06 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #109,758 | 161 | 0.05 | +5 bearers (+3.2%) | Down 3,853 places |
| 2020 | #114,613 | 162 | 0.05 | +1 bearers (+0.6%) | Down 4,855 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 Mollenkamp 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 | #109,758 | #114,613 | -4.4% |
| Count | 161 | 162 | 0.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.05 | 8.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mollenkamp bearers went from 161 to 162 (+0.6% change). The surname moved down 4,855 positions in the national ranking, going from #109,758 to #114,613.
FAQ
Mollenkamp surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mollenkamp?
Name Census estimates that about 186 living Americans carry the surname Mollenkamp. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,842,765 residents.
How common is Mollenkamp?
Mollenkamp ranks #114,613 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.05 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 162 people with the surname Mollenkamp. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (186), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.05 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.05 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 Mollenkamp.
Has Mollenkamp become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mollenkamp went from 161 recorded bearers to 162. That is an increase of 1 (+0.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #109,758 to #114,613.
What does the Census say about the background of Mollenkamp?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mollenkamp, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.9%). 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 Mollenkamp in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.4% (148 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mollenkamp appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.4%), Two or More Races (5.6%), Asian/Pacific Islander (1.9%). 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 Mollenkamp (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 Mollenkamp mean?
A German habitational surname derived from the name of a place called Mollenkampen. 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 Mollenkamp (0.05 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 share the surname Mollenkamp?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.