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

Poppe, 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 Poppe surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Poppe in America

Poppe is the 9730th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Poppe surname appeared 3,333 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 Poppe.

We can also compare 2010 data for Poppe 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 Poppe

The surname Poppe is of German origin, derived from the Low German word "Poppe" which means "doll" or "puppet." It originated in the northern regions of Germany, particularly in the areas around Hamburg and Lübeck, sometime during the late Middle Ages.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Poppe can be found in the Bremische Bürgerbuch (Bremen Citizen's Book) from the 14th century, where it appears as "Poppen." This suggests that the name was already in use among the burgher class of the Hanseatic city of Bremen by that time.

In the 16th century, the name Poppe was also documented in the records of the city of Lübeck, one of the major trading centers of the Hanseatic League. It is possible that the name spread from the northern German regions to other parts of Europe through the trade networks of the Hanseatic merchants.

A notable early bearer of the name was Hans Poppe (c. 1500-1570), a German painter and engraver from Münster, who is known for his religious works and portraits. Another Poppe of historical significance was Johann Poppe (1576-1633), a German theologian and philosopher from Mecklenburg, who served as a professor at the University of Rostock.

In the 17th century, the Poppe family was well-established in the region of Saxony, as evidenced by the birth of Christian Friedrich Poppe (1652-1732), a German jurist and professor of law at the University of Leipzig.

The 18th century saw the rise of Johann Heinrich Poppe (1716-1774), a German composer and organist from Saxony, who is best known for his contributions to the development of the German organ tradition.

One of the most prominent figures with the surname Poppe was Andries Stoffels Poppe (1589-1669), a Dutch admiral and naval hero who played a crucial role in the Dutch Golden Age. He was born in Antwerp and served in the Dutch East India Company, earning fame for his victories against the Portuguese and English fleets in the Indian Ocean.

While the surname Poppe has its roots in northern Germany, it has since spread to other parts of Europe and beyond, with notable bearers of the name emerging in various fields throughout history.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Poppe

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

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 Poppe 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 Poppe 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 Poppe was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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