2000
#142,819
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Strohbeck
A German occupational surname referring to someone who lived near a straw brook or stream.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 138 Americans carry the last name Strohbeck. That puts it at #142,049 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,483,727 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Strohbeck 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
138
1 in 2,483,727
Census rank
#142,049
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
120
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 120 bearers of the surname Strohbeck in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 142049th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Strohbeck, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.7%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (2.5%) and Hispanic (0.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Strohbeck
The surname Strohbeck is of German origin, with roots dating back to the Middle Ages. It originated in the regions of Lower Saxony and Westphalia, where the name was derived from the old German words "stroh," meaning straw, and "beck," referring to a small stream or brook.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Bremisches Urkundenbuch, a collection of medieval documents from the city of Bremen, where a Hermannus Strobeke was mentioned in 1279. The name was also documented in the Westphalian town of Bielefeld in the 14th century, suggesting its widespread use in the region.
During the Renaissance period, the Strohbeck name appeared in various historical records, such as the Wehrener Kirchenbuch, a church register from the town of Wehren, where a Johannes Strohbeck was recorded in 1567. Another notable figure from this era was Hans Strohbeck, a merchant who lived in the city of Hamburg in the late 16th century.
As the centuries passed, the Strohbeck name spread across German-speaking lands, with variations in spelling emerging, including Strohbeck, Straubeck, and Strobbeck. One notable individual from the 18th century was Johann Friedrich Strohbeck, a philosopher and theologian born in Halle in 1724.
In the 19th century, the name gained recognition through figures like Karl Strohbeck, a German painter born in 1818 in Mannheim. Another prominent figure was Wilhelm Strohbeck, a military officer and politician who served in the Prussian government during the late 1800s.
Looking further back in history, there are records of the Strohbeck name being associated with various place names, such as Strobekeshusen (now known as Strobbenhausen) in Lower Saxony, which was mentioned in a document from 1288. This suggests that the name may have originated from a specific location before becoming a widespread surname.
Overall, the surname Strohbeck has a rich history spanning centuries, with its roots firmly planted in the German regions of Lower Saxony and Westphalia. While its exact origins remain somewhat uncertain, the name's connection to natural elements like straw and streams provides a glimpse into the lives of its earliest bearers.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Strohbeck
Among Census respondents with the surname Strohbeck, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.7%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (2.5%) and Hispanic (0.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Strohbeck 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 Strohbeck surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White96.7% · 116
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.5% · 3
- Hispanic or Latino0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Strohbeck
Strohbeck 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
#136,449
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 123
+16 bearers (+15.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 6,370 places
2020
#142,049
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 120
-3 bearers (-2.4%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 5,600 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #142,819 | 107 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #136,449 | 123 | 0.04 | +16 bearers (+15.0%) | Up 6,370 places |
| 2020 | #142,049 | 120 | 0.04 | -3 bearers (-2.4%) | Down 5,600 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 Strohbeck 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 | #136,449 | #142,049 | -4.1% |
| Count | 123 | 120 | -2.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | 0.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Strohbeck bearers went from 123 to 120 (-2.4% change). The surname moved down 5,600 positions in the national ranking, going from #136,449 to #142,049.
FAQ
Strohbeck surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Strohbeck?
Name Census estimates that about 138 living Americans carry the surname Strohbeck. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,483,727 residents.
How common is Strohbeck?
Strohbeck ranks #142,049 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 120 people with the surname Strohbeck. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (138), 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 Strohbeck.
Has Strohbeck become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Strohbeck went from 123 recorded bearers to 120. That is a decrease of 3 (-2.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #136,449 to #142,049.
What does the Census say about the background of Strohbeck?
Among Census respondents with the surname Strohbeck, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.7%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (2.5%) and Hispanic (0.8%). 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 Strohbeck in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.7% (116 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Strohbeck appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (96.7%), Asian/Pacific Islander (2.5%), Hispanic (0.8%). 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 Strohbeck (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 Strohbeck mean?
A German occupational surname referring to someone who lived near a straw brook or stream. 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 Strohbeck (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 are called Strohbeck?
If you just want to know how many people have the surname Strohbeck, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.