2000
#4,342
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,575
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.81
Rare Last name
Schenk
An occupational surname referring to a cupbearer, steward, or one who pours wine.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 8,446 Americans carry the last name Schenk. That puts it at #4,672 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.46 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 40,582 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Schenk 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Schenk with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
8.4K
1 in 40,582
Census rank
#4,672
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
7.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 7,365 bearers of the surname Schenk in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.46 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4672nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Schenk, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (3.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Schenk
The surname Schenk is of German origin and can be traced back to the Middle Ages. The name is derived from the Middle High German word 'schenke', which means 'cup-bearer' or 'butler'. It originally referred to a person who served wine or other beverages at the court of a nobleman or monarch.
The earliest recorded instances of the name Schenk date back to the 13th century. One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Wolfram Schenk, a German knight who lived in the late 12th and early 13th centuries. He is mentioned in the historical records of the Teutonic Order, a German Catholic military order that played a significant role in the Northern Crusades.
Another notable figure with the surname Schenk was Eberhard Schenk, a German politician and diplomat who lived from 1530 to 1592. He served as the Chancellor of the Margraviate of Baden and played a crucial role in the negotiations that led to the Peace of Augsburg in 1555, which ended the religious conflict between Protestants and Catholics in the Holy Roman Empire.
In the 16th century, the Schenk family was prominent in the region of Westphalia, in present-day North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. One of the most famous members of the family from this period was Johann Schenk von Nideggen, a military commander who fought in the Thirty Years' War (1618-1648). He was born in 1595 and died in 1645.
The name Schenk can also be found in various place names across Germany, such as Schenkenzell, a town in the Black Forest region, and Schenkenberg, a hill in the city of Wuppertal. These place names likely derived from the surname or were named after individuals bearing the name.
Another notable individual with the surname Schenk was Theodor Schenk, a German composer and violinist who lived from 1756 to 1830. He was a respected musician during his time and composed several operas and other works.
In more recent history, one of the most famous bearers of the surname Schenk was Gerhard Schenk, a German athlete who competed in track and field events. He won the gold medal in the decathlon at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Schenk
Among Census respondents with the surname Schenk, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (3.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Schenk 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 Schenk surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.4% · 6,728
- Two or more races3.3% · 244
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 230
- Black or African American0.9% · 63
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 61
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 39
Timeline
Historical Census data for Schenk
Schenk 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
#4,637
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,651
+76 bearers (+1.0%)
Per 100,000 2.59
Rank movement Down 295 places
2020
#4,672
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,365
-286 bearers (-3.7%)
Per 100,000 2.46
Rank movement Down 35 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,342 | 7,575 | 2.81 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,637 | 7,651 | 2.59 | +76 bearers (+1.0%) | Down 295 places |
| 2020 | #4,672 | 7,365 | 2.46 | -286 bearers (-3.7%) | Down 35 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 Schenk 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 | #4,637 | #4,672 | -0.8% |
| Count | 7,651 | 7,365 | -3.7% |
| Per 100K | 2.59 | 2.46 | -4.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Schenk bearers went from 7,651 to 7,365 (-3.7% change). The surname moved down 35 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,637 to #4,672.
FAQ
Schenk surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Schenk?
Name Census estimates that about 8,446 living Americans carry the surname Schenk. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 40,582 residents.
How common is Schenk?
Schenk ranks #4,672 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.46 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 7,365 people with the surname Schenk. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (8,446), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.46 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.46 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Schenk.
Has Schenk become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Schenk went from 7,651 recorded bearers to 7,365. That is a decrease of 286 (-3.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #4,637 to #4,672.
What does the Census say about the background of Schenk?
Among Census respondents with the surname Schenk, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (3.1%). 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 Schenk in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.4% (6,728 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Schenk appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.4%), Two or More Races (3.3%), Hispanic (3.1%). 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 Schenk (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 Schenk mean?
An occupational surname referring to a cupbearer, steward, or one who pours wine. 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 Schenk (2.46 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 share the surname Schenk?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.