2000
#21,742
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,116
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.41
Rare Last name
Reschke
A German surname derived from the Slavic word "rész", possibly referring to a person living near a border region.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,326 Americans carry the last name Reschke. That puts it at #22,759 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.39 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 258,487 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Reschke 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
1.3K
1 in 258,487
Census rank
#22,759
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,156 bearers of the surname Reschke in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.39 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 22759th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Reschke, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Reschke
The surname Reschke is of German origin and can be traced back to the late Middle Ages. It is believed to have originated from the northern regions of Germany, particularly in areas such as Mecklenburg and Pomerania.
The name Reschke is derived from the German word "Rösch," which refers to a type of tall grass or reed commonly found in wetlands and marshes. This suggests that the name may have originated as a descriptive surname, likely given to someone who resided near or worked in areas with an abundance of reeds.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Reschke can be found in the Mecklenburgisches Urkundenbuch, a collection of historical documents from the region of Mecklenburg, dating back to the 15th century. In this collection, there are references to individuals with the surname Reschke, indicating the name's presence in the area during that time period.
In the 16th century, the name Reschke appeared in various records and manuscripts from the regions of Mecklenburg and Pomerania. For example, in 1534, a man named Hans Reschke was mentioned in the records of the city of Rostock, a major port city in northern Germany.
One notable figure with the surname Reschke was Johann Christian Reschke, a German composer and organist who lived from 1688 to 1755. He was born in Nuremberg and is known for his contributions to the Baroque music tradition.
Another individual of historical significance was Friedrich Wilhelm Reschke, a German lawyer and politician who lived from 1790 to 1858. He served as a member of the Prussian National Assembly and played a role in the revolutionary movements of the mid-19th century.
In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, the surname Reschke appeared in various records from the regions of Brandenburg and Silesia, suggesting that the name had spread to these areas over time.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Reschke in the United States can be found in the late 19th century. In 1883, a man named Carl Reschke was listed as a resident of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in the city's directory.
Throughout history, the surname Reschke has also been associated with various place names and locations in Germany, such as the village of Reschkehütten in Saxony-Anhalt and the town of Reschke in the former province of West Prussia (now part of Poland).
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Reschke
Among Census respondents with the surname Reschke, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Reschke 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 Reschke surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.3% · 1,078
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 32
- Two or more races2.8% · 32
- Black or African American0.5% · 6
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.3% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Reschke
Reschke 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
#22,131
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,168
+52 bearers (+4.7%)
Per 100,000 0.40
Rank movement Down 389 places
2020
#22,759
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,156
-12 bearers (-1.0%)
Per 100,000 0.39
Rank movement Down 628 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #21,742 | 1,116 | 0.41 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #22,131 | 1,168 | 0.40 | +52 bearers (+4.7%) | Down 389 places |
| 2020 | #22,759 | 1,156 | 0.39 | -12 bearers (-1.0%) | Down 628 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 Reschke 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 | #22,131 | #22,759 | -2.8% |
| Count | 1,168 | 1,156 | -1.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.40 | 0.39 | -3.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Reschke bearers went from 1,168 to 1,156 (-1.0% change). The surname moved down 628 positions in the national ranking, going from #22,131 to #22,759.
FAQ
Reschke surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Reschke?
Name Census estimates that about 1,326 living Americans carry the surname Reschke. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 258,487 residents.
How common is Reschke?
Reschke ranks #22,759 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.39 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 1,156 people with the surname Reschke. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,326), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.39 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.39 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 Reschke.
Has Reschke become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Reschke went from 1,168 recorded bearers to 1,156. That is a decrease of 12 (-1.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #22,131 to #22,759.
What does the Census say about the background of Reschke?
Among Census respondents with the surname Reschke, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Reschke in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.3% (1,078 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Reschke appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.3%), Hispanic (2.8%), Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Reschke (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 Reschke mean?
A German surname derived from the Slavic word "rész", possibly referring to a person living near a border region. 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 Reschke (0.39 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 Reschke?
Want to know how common the surname Reschke is? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.