2000
#135,837
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Neckers
A Dutch surname derived from the word "nekker" meaning "mischievous household spirit".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 123 Americans carry the last name Neckers. 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 Neckers 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 Neckers 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 Neckers, the largest self-reported group is White at 99.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Neckers
The surname NECKERS originated in Germany and dates back to the 13th century. It is derived from the German word "Neck," which refers to a peninsula or a piece of land jutting out into water. The name likely originated in regions near bodies of water, such as the Rhine River or the Baltic Sea.
In medieval times, surnames were often derived from geographic locations, occupations, or personal characteristics. The NECKERS name may have been given to someone who lived on or near a peninsula or a neck of land. Alternatively, it could have been a descriptive name for someone with a long or thin neck.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the NECKERS name can be found in the Stadtbücher von Lübeck, a collection of municipal records from the city of Lübeck in Northern Germany, dating back to the 14th century. The name is also mentioned in various other historical documents from the region, such as church records and land deeds.
Notable individuals with the surname NECKERS include:
1. Hans Neckers (c. 1570-1635), a German painter and engraver known for his religious works and portraits.
2. Johann Neckers (1629-1695), a German theologian and author who served as a professor at the University of Tübingen.
3. Maria Neckers (1781-1859), a German author and poet who wrote under the pen name "Doris."
4. Heinrich Neckers (1808-1879), a German-born American businessman and politician who served as the Mayor of Cincinnati, Ohio, from 1857 to 1859.
5. Karl Neckers (1856-1919), a German chemist and professor at the University of Tübingen, known for his research on organic compounds.
The NECKERS name has also been associated with various place names, such as Neckarsulm, a town in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, which derives its name from the Neckar River. Additionally, there are variations in the spelling of the name, such as Necker, Necker, and Neckermann, which may have originated from different regions or dialects within Germany.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Neckers
Among Census respondents with the surname Neckers, the largest self-reported group is White at 99.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Neckers 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 Neckers surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White99.1% · 106
- Two or more races0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Neckers
Neckers 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
#141,140
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 118
+4 bearers (+3.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 5,303 places
2020
#151,639
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
-11 bearers (-9.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 10,499 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #135,837 | 114 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #141,140 | 118 | 0.04 | +4 bearers (+3.5%) | Down 5,303 places |
| 2020 | #151,639 | 107 | 0.04 | -11 bearers (-9.3%) | Down 10,499 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 Neckers 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 | #141,140 | #151,639 | -7.4% |
| Count | 118 | 107 | -9.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -10.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Neckers bearers went from 118 to 107 (-9.3% change). The surname moved down 10,499 positions in the national ranking, going from #141,140 to #151,639.
FAQ
Neckers surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Neckers?
Name Census estimates that about 123 living Americans carry the surname Neckers. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,786,621 residents.
How common is Neckers?
Neckers 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 Neckers. 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 Neckers.
Has Neckers become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Neckers went from 118 recorded bearers to 107. That is a decrease of 11 (-9.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #141,140 to #151,639.
What does the Census say about the background of Neckers?
Among Census respondents with the surname Neckers, the largest self-reported group is White at 99.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (0.9%). 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 Neckers in the 2020 Census, accounting for 99.1% (106 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Neckers appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (99.1%), Two or More Races (0.9%). 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 Neckers (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 Neckers mean?
A Dutch surname derived from the word "nekker" meaning "mischievous household spirit". 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 Neckers (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 Neckers?
If you just want to know how many people have the surname Neckers, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.