2000
#35,585
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 598
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.22
Very Rare Last name
Stahnke
A German surname derived from a place name meaning "man from a small town or village."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 711 Americans carry the last name Stahnke. That puts it at #38,417 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.21 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 482,074 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Stahnke 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
711
1 in 482,074
Census rank
#38,417
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
620
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 620 bearers of the surname Stahnke in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.21 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 38417th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Stahnke, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.7%) and Two or More Races (3.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Stahnke
The surname "STAHNKE" is believed to have originated in Germany, likely in the 16th or 17th century. It is thought to be derived from the old German word "stah," which means "steel" or "blade." This suggests that the name may have been initially associated with blacksmiths or sword makers.
One of the earliest known records of the name dates back to the late 16th century in the town of Wittenberg, where a family by the name of Stahnke was documented. It is possible that the name originated in this region and later spread to other parts of Germany.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the name Stahnke appeared in various historical documents and records across Germany. For instance, in 1684, a man named Johann Stahnke was listed as a resident of the town of Stettin (now Szczecin, Poland).
In the early 19th century, a notable figure with the surname Stahnke was Carl Friedrich Stahnke, a German author and playwright born in 1816 in Berlin. He is best known for his works on German literature and folklore.
Another prominent individual with this name was Gustav Stahnke, a German military officer and historian who lived from 1868 to 1945. He served in World War I and later wrote several books on military history and tactics.
In the 20th century, one of the most famous individuals with the surname Stahnke was Harro Stahnke, a German boxer who competed in the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin. He won a bronze medal in the middleweight division.
Additionally, there was Fritz Stahnke, a German politician and member of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) who was born in 1885 and served as a member of the Reichstag (German parliament) from 1924 to 1933.
While the name Stahnke is primarily associated with Germany, it has also spread to other parts of the world, likely due to immigration patterns in the 19th and 20th centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Stahnke
Among Census respondents with the surname Stahnke, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.7%) and Two or More Races (3.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Stahnke 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 Stahnke surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.3% · 560
- Hispanic or Latino4.7% · 29
- Two or more races3.1% · 19
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 5
- Black or African American0.3% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Stahnke
Stahnke 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
#36,154
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 620
+22 bearers (+3.7%)
Per 100,000 0.21
Rank movement Down 569 places
2020
#38,417
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 620
+0 bearers (+0.0%)
Per 100,000 0.21
Rank movement Down 2,263 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #35,585 | 598 | 0.22 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #36,154 | 620 | 0.21 | +22 bearers (+3.7%) | Down 569 places |
| 2020 | #38,417 | 620 | 0.21 | +0 bearers (+0.0%) | Down 2,263 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 Stahnke 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 | #36,154 | #38,417 | -6.3% |
| Count | 620 | 620 | 0.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.21 | 0.21 | -1.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Stahnke bearers went from 620 to 620 (+0.0% change). The surname moved down 2,263 positions in the national ranking, going from #36,154 to #38,417.
FAQ
Stahnke surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Stahnke?
Name Census estimates that about 711 living Americans carry the surname Stahnke. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 482,074 residents.
How common is Stahnke?
Stahnke ranks #38,417 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.21 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 620 people with the surname Stahnke. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (711), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.21 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.21 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 Stahnke.
Has Stahnke become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Stahnke went from 620 recorded bearers to 620. That is an increase of 0 (+0.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #36,154 to #38,417.
What does the Census say about the background of Stahnke?
Among Census respondents with the surname Stahnke, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.7%) and Two or More Races (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 Stahnke in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.3% (560 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Stahnke appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.3%), Hispanic (4.7%), Two or More Races (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 Stahnke (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 Stahnke mean?
A German surname derived from a place name meaning "man from a small town or village." 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 Stahnke (0.21 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 Stahnke?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.