2000
#5,822
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,438
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.02
Rare Last name
Steinke
A German occupational surname referring to a stonemason or stonecutter.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,949 Americans carry the last name Steinke. That puts it at #6,304 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.74 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 57,615 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Steinke 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
5.9K
1 in 57,615
Census rank
#6,304
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,188 bearers of the surname Steinke in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.74 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6304th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Steinke, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Two or More Races (2.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of 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.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Steinke
Among Census respondents with the surname Steinke, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Two or More Races (2.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Steinke 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 Steinke surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.6% · 4,907
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 128
- Two or more races2.0% · 106
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 24
- Black or African American0.3% · 13
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Steinke
Steinke 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
#6,211
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,506
+68 bearers (+1.3%)
Per 100,000 1.87
Rank movement Down 389 places
2020
#6,304
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,188
-318 bearers (-5.8%)
Per 100,000 1.74
Rank movement Down 93 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,822 | 5,438 | 2.02 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,211 | 5,506 | 1.87 | +68 bearers (+1.3%) | Down 389 places |
| 2020 | #6,304 | 5,188 | 1.74 | -318 bearers (-5.8%) | Down 93 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 Steinke 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 | #6,211 | #6,304 | -1.5% |
| Count | 5,506 | 5,188 | -5.8% |
| Per 100K | 1.87 | 1.74 | -7.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Steinke bearers went from 5,506 to 5,188 (-5.8% change). The surname moved down 93 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,211 to #6,304.
FAQ
Steinke surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Steinke?
Name Census estimates that about 5,949 living Americans carry the surname Steinke. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 57,615 residents.
How common is Steinke?
Steinke ranks #6,304 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.74 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 5,188 people with the surname Steinke. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,949), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.74 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.74 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 Steinke.
Has Steinke become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Steinke went from 5,506 recorded bearers to 5,188. That is a decrease of 318 (-5.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #6,211 to #6,304.
What does the Census say about the background of Steinke?
Among Census respondents with the surname Steinke, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Two or More Races (2.0%). 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 Steinke in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.6% (4,907 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Steinke appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.6%), Hispanic (2.5%), Two or More Races (2.0%). 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 Steinke (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 Steinke mean?
A German occupational surname referring to a stonemason or stonecutter. 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 Steinke (1.74 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 Steinke?
You can see how many people are called Steinke on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.