2000
#124,872
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 127
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Prekker
A Dutch surname derived from the word "preken," meaning to preach or deliver sermons.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 139 Americans carry the last name Prekker. That puts it at #141,309 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,465,859 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Prekker 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
139
1 in 2,465,859
Census rank
#141,309
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
121
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 121 bearers of the surname Prekker in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 141309th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Prekker, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.0%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (1.7%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Prekker
The surname Prekker is believed to have originated in Germany during the Middle Ages. It is thought to have derived from the Old German word 'preken', which meant 'to preach' or 'to spread the word'. This suggests that the name may have been given to those who worked as preachers or religious scholars.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Prekker can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae Regiae, a collection of medieval documents from the region of Saxony, dated around the 11th century. The name appears as 'Prekker' in a document listing the names of landowners in the area.
In the 13th century, a man named Johannes Prekker was mentioned in the Annales Stederburgenses, a chronicle of the town of Stederburg in Lower Saxony. He was described as a prominent scholar and theologian who taught at the local monastery.
During the 15th century, the Prekker family was known to have resided in the town of Quedlinburg, located in the present-day state of Saxony-Anhalt. The name is found in various town records and documents from that period, including the birth and death registers of the local church.
One notable individual with the surname Prekker was Matthias Prekker, born in 1562 in Quedlinburg. He was a renowned physician and author who wrote several treatises on medical practices and herbal remedies. His works were widely circulated throughout Europe during the Renaissance period.
Another historical figure with the name Prekker was Hans Prekker, a merchant and trader who lived in the city of Hamburg in the late 16th century. He was known for his extensive trade networks across the Baltic Sea region and his involvement in the Hanseatic League, a powerful commercial and defensive confederation of merchant guilds and market towns.
In the 18th century, a family by the name of Prekker settled in the town of Eisenach, in the central German state of Thuringia. One member of this family, Johann Christoph Prekker, born in 1723, was a respected clockmaker and inventor who contributed to the development of precision timekeeping devices.
While the surname Prekker is not as common today as it once was, it remains a part of the rich cultural heritage and history of Germany, particularly in the regions where it originated and was prevalent during the Middle Ages and Renaissance periods.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Prekker
Among Census respondents with the surname Prekker, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.0%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (1.7%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Prekker 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 Prekker surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White95.0% · 115
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.7% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.7% · 2
- Black or African American0.8% · 1
- Hispanic or Latino0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Prekker
Prekker 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
#130,610
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 130
+3 bearers (+2.4%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 5,738 places
2020
#141,309
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 121
-9 bearers (-6.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 10,699 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #124,872 | 127 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #130,610 | 130 | 0.04 | +3 bearers (+2.4%) | Down 5,738 places |
| 2020 | #141,309 | 121 | 0.04 | -9 bearers (-6.9%) | Down 10,699 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 Prekker 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 | #130,610 | #141,309 | -8.2% |
| Count | 130 | 121 | -6.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | 1.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Prekker bearers went from 130 to 121 (-6.9% change). The surname moved down 10,699 positions in the national ranking, going from #130,610 to #141,309.
FAQ
Prekker surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Prekker?
Name Census estimates that about 139 living Americans carry the surname Prekker. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,465,859 residents.
How common is Prekker?
Prekker ranks #141,309 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 121 people with the surname Prekker. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (139), 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 Prekker.
Has Prekker become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Prekker went from 130 recorded bearers to 121. That is a decrease of 9 (-6.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #130,610 to #141,309.
What does the Census say about the background of Prekker?
Among Census respondents with the surname Prekker, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.0%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (1.7%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.7%). 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 Prekker in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.0% (115 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Prekker appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (95.0%), Asian/Pacific Islander (1.7%), American Indian/Alaska Native (1.7%). 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 Prekker (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 Prekker mean?
A Dutch surname derived from the word "preken," meaning to preach or deliver sermons. 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 Prekker (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 Americans have the surname Prekker?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.