Find out how popular the last name Steinke is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Steinke.

Steinke, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Steinke surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Steinke in America

Steinke is the 6211th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Steinke surname appeared 5,506 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Steinke.

We can also compare 2010 data for Steinke to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Steinke

The surname STEINKE is of German origin, derived from the word "Stein" which means "stone" in German. The name first appeared in the regions of Prussia and Saxony during the late Middle Ages, around the 14th century.

The earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in medieval German records and documents, often referring to individuals who lived near stone quarries or worked as stonemasons. Some variations of the spelling include Steinke, Steinchen, and Steincken.

One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Hans Steinke, a stonemason from the town of Zittau in Saxony, who lived in the 15th century. Records indicate that he was involved in the construction of several churches and buildings in the region.

Another notable figure was Johann Steinke, a Protestant reformer who lived in the 16th century. He was born in Breslau, Silesia (now Wrocław, Poland) in 1512 and played a significant role in spreading the teachings of Martin Luther in the area.

In the 17th century, the name STEINKE appeared in various records across German-speaking regions, including the Duchy of Pomerania and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. One such individual was Georg Steinke, a farmer and landowner from the village of Neuendorf near Stettin (now Szczecin, Poland), who lived from 1635 to 1701.

During the 18th century, the surname STEINKE was also found in the Baltic region, particularly in the territories of East Prussia and Livonia (modern-day Latvia and Estonia). One noteworthy bearer of the name from this period was Wilhelm Steinke, a merchant and ship owner from Königsberg (now Kaliningrad, Russia), who lived from 1720 to 1789.

In the 19th century, the name STEINKE spread further across Germany and beyond, as many individuals with this surname emigrated to other parts of Europe and the Americas. One such individual was Friedrich Steinke, a German-American painter and lithographer who was born in Breslau in 1826 and later settled in New York City.

While the surname STEINKE has its roots in Germany, it has since been adopted by families in various countries around the world, reflecting the migration patterns of German-speaking populations throughout history.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Steinke

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Steinke.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Steinke was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Steinke has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Steinke was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Steinke, please contact us.

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