2000
#143,847
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 106
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Radecke
A locational surname derived from a place name in Germany.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 110 Americans carry the last name Radecke. That puts it at #156,540 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 3,115,949 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Radecke 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
110
1 in 3,115,949
Census rank
#156,540
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
96
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 96 bearers of the surname Radecke in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 156540th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Radecke, the largest self-reported group is White at 100.0%.
Origin
Meaning and origin of Radecke
The surname Radecke has its origins in Germany, dating back to the late medieval period around the 13th century. It is believed to have originated in the region of Saxony-Anhalt, particularly in the areas surrounding the city of Magdeburg. The name is derived from the Old German word "rad," meaning "wheel," combined with the suffix "-eck," which denotes a place or location. This suggests that the name initially referred to a person living near a wheelwright's workshop or a place associated with wheel-making.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Magdeburg Stadtbuch, a historical municipal record from the 14th century, where a certain "Hans Radecke" is mentioned as a resident of the city in the year 1386. Another early reference comes from the 16th century, when a "Peter Radecke" is listed in the records of the town of Dessau, located in present-day Saxony-Anhalt.
In the 17th century, the Radecke name appeared in various church records and tax registers across Saxony-Anhalt and neighboring regions. Notable individuals from this period include Johann Radecke (1610-1675), a Lutheran pastor in the town of Zerbst, and Christoph Radecke (1638-1712), a merchant and landowner in the city of Halle.
As the name spread throughout Germany, it also took on variations in spelling, such as Radeke, Radecke, and Radetzky. One of the most famous bearers of this surname was Joseph Radetzky von Radetz (1766-1858), an Austrian field marshal who served in the Napoleonic Wars and is celebrated for his victories in the Italian campaign of 1848-1849.
Other notable individuals with the Radecke surname include:
1. Friedrich Radecke (1736-1797), a German composer and organist from Brandenburg.
2. Karl Radecke (1865-1942), a German architect known for his work in Berlin and other cities.
3. Otto Radecke (1876-1952), a German painter and illustrator active in the early 20th century.
4. Erich Radecke (1909-1995), a German writer and journalist who served as a war correspondent during World War II.
5. Hans-Ulrich Radecke (born 1938), a German politician and member of the Christian Democratic Union party.
While the surname Radecke has its roots in Germany, it has since spread to other parts of the world through emigration, carrying with it the rich history and legacy of its origins.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Radecke
Among Census respondents with the surname Radecke, the largest self-reported group is White at 100.0%.
The bar chart below shows how Radecke 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 Radecke surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White100.0% · 96
Timeline
Historical Census data for Radecke
Radecke 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
#144,141
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
+9 bearers (+8.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 294 places
2020
#156,540
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 96
-19 bearers (-16.5%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 12,399 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #143,847 | 106 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #144,141 | 115 | 0.04 | +9 bearers (+8.5%) | Down 294 places |
| 2020 | #156,540 | 96 | 0.03 | -19 bearers (-16.5%) | Down 12,399 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 Radecke 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 | #144,141 | #156,540 | -8.6% |
| Count | 115 | 96 | -16.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -19.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Radecke bearers went from 115 to 96 (-16.5% change). The surname moved down 12,399 positions in the national ranking, going from #144,141 to #156,540.
FAQ
Radecke surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Radecke?
Name Census estimates that about 110 living Americans carry the surname Radecke. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 3,115,949 residents.
How common is Radecke?
Radecke ranks #156,540 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 96 people with the surname Radecke. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (110), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Radecke.
Has Radecke become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Radecke went from 115 recorded bearers to 96. That is a decrease of 19 (-16.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #144,141 to #156,540.
What does the Census say about the background of Radecke?
Among Census respondents with the surname Radecke, the largest self-reported group is White at 100.0%. 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 Radecke in the 2020 Census, accounting for 100.0% (96 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Radecke appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (100.0%). 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 Radecke (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 Radecke mean?
A locational surname derived from a place name in Germany. 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 Radecke (0.03 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 are called Radecke?
For a quick modern take, check how many people are called Radecke on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.