2000
#9,583
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,112
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.15
Rare Last name
Poppe
A German occupational surname referring to a doll maker or puppet master.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,577 Americans carry the last name Poppe. That puts it at #9,883 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 95,822 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Poppe 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
3.6K
1 in 95,822
Census rank
#9,883
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,119 bearers of the surname Poppe in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9883rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Poppe, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.3%) and Two or More Races (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of 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.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Poppe
Among Census respondents with the surname Poppe, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.3%) and Two or More Races (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Poppe 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 Poppe surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.9% · 2,896
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 104
- Two or more races2.5% · 77
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 21
- Black or African American0.5% · 17
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Poppe
Poppe 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
#9,730
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,333
+221 bearers (+7.1%)
Per 100,000 1.13
Rank movement Down 147 places
2020
#9,883
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,119
-214 bearers (-6.4%)
Per 100,000 1.04
Rank movement Down 153 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,583 | 3,112 | 1.15 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #9,730 | 3,333 | 1.13 | +221 bearers (+7.1%) | Down 147 places |
| 2020 | #9,883 | 3,119 | 1.04 | -214 bearers (-6.4%) | Down 153 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 Poppe 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 | #9,730 | #9,883 | -1.6% |
| Count | 3,333 | 3,119 | -6.4% |
| Per 100K | 1.13 | 1.04 | -7.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Poppe bearers went from 3,333 to 3,119 (-6.4% change). The surname moved down 153 positions in the national ranking, going from #9,730 to #9,883.
FAQ
Poppe surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Poppe?
Name Census estimates that about 3,577 living Americans carry the surname Poppe. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 95,822 residents.
How common is Poppe?
Poppe ranks #9,883 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 3,119 people with the surname Poppe. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,577), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Poppe.
Has Poppe become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Poppe went from 3,333 recorded bearers to 3,119. That is a decrease of 214 (-6.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #9,730 to #9,883.
What does the Census say about the background of Poppe?
Among Census respondents with the surname Poppe, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.3%) and Two or More Races (2.5%). 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 Poppe in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.9% (2,896 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Poppe appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.9%), Hispanic (3.3%), Two or More Races (2.5%). 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 Poppe (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 Poppe mean?
A German occupational surname referring to a doll maker or puppet master. 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 Poppe (1.04 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 have the surname Poppe?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.