2000
#133,114
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Skief
A surname potentially stemming from the German word "schief" meaning crooked or oblique.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 125 Americans carry the last name Skief. That puts it at #150,205 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,742,035 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Skief 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
125
1 in 2,742,035
Census rank
#150,205
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
109
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 109 bearers of the surname Skief in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 150205th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Skief, the largest self-reported group is Black at 45.0%. The next largest groups are White (42.2%) and Two or More Races (7.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Skief
The surname SKIEF has its origins in Germany, with the earliest known records dating back to the 12th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old High German word "scif" or "schif," which referred to a type of small boat or skiff used for fishing or transportation on rivers and lakes.
In the medieval period, surnames often originated from occupations, and it is likely that SKIEF was initially adopted as a surname by individuals or families involved in boat-building, fishing, or other water-related trades along the rivers and waterways of central Europe.
One of the earliest documented references to the surname SKIEF can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae Regiae, a collection of medieval documents from Saxony, which mentions a "Hermannus Scief" in a land transaction record from 1187.
As the surname spread across various regions of Germany, it underwent slight variations in spelling, such as Schief, Schieff, and Schiefe, reflecting local dialects and scribal variations. These alternative spellings can be found in various historical records throughout the centuries.
Notable individuals bearing the surname SKIEF include Johann Skief (1565-1633), a German composer and organist who served at the court of the Elector of Saxony. Another prominent figure was Anna Skief (1680-1755), a renowned painter and miniaturist from Nuremberg, whose intricate portraits and landscapes were highly sought after by the nobility of her time.
During the 18th century, the SKIEF surname also appeared in the coastal regions of northern Germany, where several families were involved in shipbuilding and maritime trades. One such individual was Friedrich Skief (1712-1789), a master shipwright from Hamburg who oversaw the construction of several merchant vessels for the city's thriving port.
As German emigration to other parts of Europe and overseas increased in the 19th century, the SKIEF surname began to appear in various foreign records. For instance, Karl Skief (1820-1892), a German-born watchmaker, settled in London and established a successful horological business that catered to the city's elite clientele.
Throughout its history, the SKIEF surname has maintained a strong association with its German roots and maritime heritage, reflecting the diverse occupations and experiences of those who have borne this distinctive name over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Skief
Among Census respondents with the surname Skief, the largest self-reported group is Black at 45.0%. The next largest groups are White (42.2%) and Two or More Races (7.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Skief 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 Skief surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American45.0% · 49
- White42.2% · 46
- Two or more races7.3% · 8
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 4
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Skief
Skief 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
#149,395
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
-7 bearers (-6.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 16,281 places
2020
#150,205
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 109
-1 bearers (-0.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 810 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #133,114 | 117 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #149,395 | 110 | 0.04 | -7 bearers (-6.0%) | Down 16,281 places |
| 2020 | #150,205 | 109 | 0.04 | -1 bearers (-0.9%) | Down 810 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 Skief 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 | #149,395 | #150,205 | -0.5% |
| Count | 110 | 109 | -0.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -8.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Skief bearers went from 110 to 109 (-0.9% change). The surname moved down 810 positions in the national ranking, going from #149,395 to #150,205.
FAQ
Skief surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Skief?
Name Census estimates that about 125 living Americans carry the surname Skief. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,742,035 residents.
How common is Skief?
Skief ranks #150,205 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 109 people with the surname Skief. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (125), 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 Skief.
Has Skief become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Skief went from 110 recorded bearers to 109. That is a decrease of 1 (-0.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #149,395 to #150,205.
What does the Census say about the background of Skief?
Among Census respondents with the surname Skief, the largest self-reported group is Black at 45.0%. The next largest groups are White (42.2%) and Two or More Races (7.3%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Skief in the 2020 Census, accounting for 45.0% (49 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Skief appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (45.0%), White (42.2%), Two or More Races (7.3%). 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 Skief (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 Skief mean?
A surname potentially stemming from the German word "schief" meaning crooked or oblique. 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 Skief (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 share the surname Skief?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.