2000
#150,436
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 100
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Roepcke
A surname originating from Slavic languages meaning "from the creek or stream".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 133 Americans carry the last name Roepcke. That puts it at #145,028 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,577,100 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Roepcke 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
133
1 in 2,577,100
Census rank
#145,028
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
116
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 116 bearers of the surname Roepcke in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 145028th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Roepcke, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Roepcke
The surname Roepcke has its origins in Germany, first appearing in records during the Middle Ages. It is believed to have derived from the German word "Röpke," which was an occupational name referring to someone who worked with ropes or made ropes. The earliest recorded spelling of the name was "Ropke" in the 14th century.
The Roepcke name was initially concentrated in the northern regions of Germany, particularly in the areas around Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein. It later spread to other parts of the country and neighboring regions as families migrated and settled in new areas.
While the Roepcke surname does not appear in well-known historical manuscripts like the Domesday Book, it can be found in various German church records, tax rolls, and other documents from the late medieval period onwards.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the Roepcke surname was Hans Ropke, who was born around 1450 in the town of Lübeck, Germany. Another notable bearer of the name was Johann Roepcke, a merchant and alderman in Hamburg, who lived from 1520 to 1587.
Over the centuries, several notable individuals have carried the Roepcke surname. These include:
1. Günter Roepcke (1905-1982), a German mathematician and university professor known for his contributions to numerical analysis and partial differential equations.
2. Wilhelm Roepcke (1891-1970), a German-born American architect who designed numerous buildings in the Art Deco style, including the iconic Fox Theater in Atlanta, Georgia.
3. Hermann Roepcke (1884-1942), a German military officer who served in World War I and later became a general in the Wehrmacht during World War II.
4. Erich Roepcke (1891-1974), a German writer and journalist who published several novels and short story collections.
5. Theodor Roepcke (1829-1895), a German politician and lawyer who served as a member of the Prussian House of Representatives (Preußisches Abgeordnetenhaus) in the late 19th century.
The Roepcke surname has also been associated with various place names, particularly in northern Germany, where it originated. These include the village of Röpke near Rostock, and the town of Ropke in Schleswig-Holstein.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Roepcke
Among Census respondents with the surname Roepcke, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Roepcke 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 Roepcke surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.9% · 102
- Two or more races3.4% · 4
- Hispanic or Latino2.6% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.6% · 3
- Black or African American1.7% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.7% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Roepcke
Roepcke 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
#148,347
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
+11 bearers (+11.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 2,089 places
2020
#145,028
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 116
+5 bearers (+4.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 3,319 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #150,436 | 100 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #148,347 | 111 | 0.04 | +11 bearers (+11.0%) | Up 2,089 places |
| 2020 | #145,028 | 116 | 0.04 | +5 bearers (+4.5%) | Up 3,319 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 Roepcke 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 | #148,347 | #145,028 | 2.2% |
| Count | 111 | 116 | 4.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -3.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Roepcke bearers went from 111 to 116 (+4.5% change). The surname moved up 3,319 positions in the national ranking, going from #148,347 to #145,028.
FAQ
Roepcke surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Roepcke?
Name Census estimates that about 133 living Americans carry the surname Roepcke. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,577,100 residents.
How common is Roepcke?
Roepcke ranks #145,028 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 116 people with the surname Roepcke. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (133), 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 Roepcke.
Has Roepcke become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Roepcke went from 111 recorded bearers to 116. That is an increase of 5 (+4.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #148,347 to #145,028.
What does the Census say about the background of Roepcke?
Among Census respondents with the surname Roepcke, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (2.6%). 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 Roepcke in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.9% (102 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Roepcke appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.9%), Two or More Races (3.4%), Hispanic (2.6%). 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 Roepcke (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 Roepcke mean?
A surname originating from Slavic languages meaning "from the creek or stream". 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 Roepcke (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 people are called Roepcke?
If you just want to know how many Americans have the surname Roepcke, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.