2000
#3,223
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 10,165
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.77
Uncommon Last name
Newkirk
From the English place name Newark, meaning "new church," or referring to someone from Newark.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 11,812 Americans carry the last name Newkirk. That puts it at #3,394 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.45 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 29,017 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Newkirk 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
12K
1 in 29,017
Census rank
#3,394
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
10K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 10,301 bearers of the surname Newkirk in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.45 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3394th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Newkirk, the largest self-reported group is White at 59.3%. The next largest groups are Black (31.9%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Newkirk
The surname Newkirk is of English origin and can be traced back to the medieval period. It is a locational name derived from the Old English words 'niwe' meaning new and 'cyrce' meaning church. The name refers to someone who lived near a newly constructed church.
Newkirk was initially found in various areas of northern England, particularly in Yorkshire and Lancashire. Some of the earliest recorded spellings of the name include Neukirk, Newkirke, and Newkyrke, which appeared in various records from the 13th century onwards.
One of the earliest references to the name can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from the year 1230, where a person named Willelmus de Neukirk is mentioned. Another early record is in the Assize Court Rolls of Lancashire from 1285, which mentions a Richard de Newkirke.
In the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a survey of land and property commissioned by William the Conqueror after the Norman conquest of England, there are no direct references to the surname Newkirk. However, the book does mention several places with names containing the word 'kirk' or 'church', which could be potential sources of the surname.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Newkirk was John Newkirk, who was born in Yorkshire, England, around 1450. Another notable figure was Thomas Newkirk, a merchant from Lancashire, who was born in 1520 and played a role in the wool trade between England and the Netherlands.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, several individuals with the surname Newkirk were involved in religious affairs. For example, Robert Newkirk, born in 1578 in Yorkshire, was a prominent Puritan minister who advocated for religious reforms in England.
Another notable individual was Sir William Newkirk, born in 1620 in Lancashire, who was a wealthy landowner and served as a Member of Parliament during the reign of King Charles II. He played a significant role in supporting the restoration of the monarchy after the English Civil War.
In the 18th century, James Newkirk, born in 1735 in Yorkshire, was a celebrated author and poet who wrote several works on English literature and poetry. His most famous work was a collection of poems titled "The Pastoral Muse," published in 1770.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals throughout history who bore the surname Newkirk. The name has a rich heritage and can be traced back to various regions of northern England during the medieval and early modern periods.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Newkirk
Among Census respondents with the surname Newkirk, the largest self-reported group is White at 59.3%. The next largest groups are Black (31.9%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Newkirk 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 Newkirk surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White59.3% · 6,110
- Black or African American31.9% · 3,290
- Two or more races4.4% · 458
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 321
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 71
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 51
Timeline
Historical Census data for Newkirk
Newkirk 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
#3,363
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 10,620
+455 bearers (+4.5%)
Per 100,000 3.60
Rank movement Down 140 places
2020
#3,394
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 10,301
-319 bearers (-3.0%)
Per 100,000 3.45
Rank movement Down 31 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,223 | 10,165 | 3.77 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,363 | 10,620 | 3.60 | +455 bearers (+4.5%) | Down 140 places |
| 2020 | #3,394 | 10,301 | 3.45 | -319 bearers (-3.0%) | Down 31 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 Newkirk 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 | #3,363 | #3,394 | -0.9% |
| Count | 10,620 | 10,301 | -3.0% |
| Per 100K | 3.60 | 3.45 | -4.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Newkirk bearers went from 10,620 to 10,301 (-3.0% change). The surname moved down 31 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,363 to #3,394.
FAQ
Newkirk surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Newkirk?
Name Census estimates that about 11,812 living Americans carry the surname Newkirk. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 29,017 residents.
How common is Newkirk?
Newkirk ranks #3,394 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.45 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 10,301 people with the surname Newkirk. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (11,812), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.45 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.45 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 Newkirk.
Has Newkirk become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Newkirk went from 10,620 recorded bearers to 10,301. That is a decrease of 319 (-3.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,363 to #3,394.
What does the Census say about the background of Newkirk?
Among Census respondents with the surname Newkirk, the largest self-reported group is White at 59.3%. The next largest groups are Black (31.9%) and Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Newkirk in the 2020 Census, accounting for 59.3% (6,110 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Newkirk appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (59.3%), Black (31.9%), Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Newkirk (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 Newkirk mean?
From the English place name Newark, meaning "new church," or referring to someone from Newark. 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 Newkirk (3.45 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 last name Newkirk?
Find out how many Americans have the surname Newkirk on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.