Find out how popular the last name Overbeck is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Overbeck.

Overbeck, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Overbeck surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Overbeck in America

Overbeck is the 17127th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Overbeck surname appeared 1,656 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Overbeck.

We can also compare 2010 data for Overbeck to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Overbeck

The surname Overbeck originated in Germany and is believed to have derived from the Middle Low German term "over beck," which translates to "over the brook" or "across the stream." This indicates that the name likely referred to someone who lived near a small body of water or a settlement built across a stream.

The earliest known records of the Overbeck name can be traced back to the 13th century in regions of northern Germany, particularly in areas around modern-day Lower Saxony and Schleswig-Holstein. The name was initially spelled in various ways, such as Ovrebecke, Overbeek, and Oberbeek, reflecting local dialects and scribal variations.

One of the earliest documented individuals with the Overbeck surname was Johannes Overbeck, a merchant and landowner from Lübeck, who lived in the late 13th century. His name appears in several historical records from that time period, indicating the family's prominence in the region.

In the 15th century, the Overbeck name gained prominence with the rise of the Hanseatic League, a powerful commercial and defensive confederation of merchant guilds and market towns in northern Europe. Several members of the Overbeck family were influential traders and merchants within this league, including Didrik Overbeck (c. 1420-1492), a wealthy merchant and shipowner from Bremen.

Another notable figure was Johann Friedrich Overbeck (1789-1869), a German Romantic painter and a leading member of the Nazarene movement in art. He was born in Lübeck and is renowned for his religious and historical paintings, many of which can be found in churches and museums across Europe.

During the 18th and 19th centuries, the Overbeck name spread further across Germany and into neighboring countries, as members of the family migrated and established new branches. One such individual was Christian Adolph Overbeck (1755-1821), a German theologian and historian who served as a professor at the University of Leipzig.

In the realm of literature, the name Overbeck is associated with Friedrich Overbeck (1789-1869), a German writer and literary critic who was a close friend of the philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche. He was born in Mühlhausen, Thuringia, and his works explored themes of culture, religion, and philosophy.

While the Overbeck surname has its roots in Germany, it has since spread to other parts of the world, including the Netherlands, Denmark, and the United States, where it was carried by German immigrants in the 19th and early 20th centuries.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Overbeck

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Overbeck.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Overbeck was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Overbeck has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Overbeck was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Overbeck, please contact us.

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