2000
#134,929
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Thielking
A locational surname derived from a place name meaning "king's woods" or "royal woods."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 131 Americans carry the last name Thielking. That puts it at #146,495 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,616,445 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Thielking 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
131
1 in 2,616,445
Census rank
#146,495
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
114
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 114 bearers of the surname Thielking in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 146495th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Thielking, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (4.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Thielking
The surname Thielking originated in the northern German regions of Lower Saxony and Schleswig-Holstein during the late medieval period. It is derived from the Low German words "tiel" meaning "tile" and "king" meaning "maker" or "burner", indicating that the earliest bearers were involved in the production of tiles or worked as tile makers.
According to historical records, the earliest known mention of the Thielking name dates back to the 14th century in the city of Lübeck, a prominent trading hub in the Hanseatic League. In a guild registry from 1382, a tile maker named Hans Thielking is listed among the members of the local craftsmen's guild.
In the 15th century, the Thielking family spread to other parts of northern Germany, with records showing branches in the cities of Hamburg and Bremen. A notable figure was Hinrich Thielking, a merchant from Bremen who embarked on trading expeditions to England and the Netherlands in the late 1400s.
The Thielking name can also be found in historical documents from the 16th and 17th centuries in the region of Holstein, which was then a part of the Danish realm. One of the earliest recorded instances is that of Claus Thielking, a farmer from the village of Itzehoe, mentioned in a land registry from 1572.
As the centuries progressed, the Thielking surname spread further across northern Germany and into neighboring regions. In the 18th century, Johannes Thielking (1693-1768), a Lutheran pastor from Schleswig, gained recognition for his theological writings and sermons.
Another notable bearer of the name was Wilhelm Thielking (1789-1854), a German composer and music teacher from Hamburg. He is remembered for his contributions to the development of choral music and his compositions for church services.
During the 19th century, the Thielking family branched out to other parts of Europe and even overseas. One prominent individual was Carl Thielking (1823-1901), a German-born merchant who settled in the United States and became a successful businessman in New York City.
While the surname Thielking is relatively uncommon today, it continues to be associated with its northern German origins and the historical tradition of tile making that gave rise to this distinctive family name.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Thielking
Among Census respondents with the surname Thielking, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (4.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Thielking 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 Thielking surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.7% · 100
- Two or more races5.3% · 6
- Asian and Pacific Islander4.4% · 5
- Hispanic or Latino1.8% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Thielking
Thielking 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
#138,304
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 121
+6 bearers (+5.2%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 3,375 places
2020
#146,495
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
-7 bearers (-5.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 8,191 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #134,929 | 115 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #138,304 | 121 | 0.04 | +6 bearers (+5.2%) | Down 3,375 places |
| 2020 | #146,495 | 114 | 0.04 | -7 bearers (-5.8%) | Down 8,191 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 Thielking 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 | #138,304 | #146,495 | -5.9% |
| Count | 121 | 114 | -5.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -4.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Thielking bearers went from 121 to 114 (-5.8% change). The surname moved down 8,191 positions in the national ranking, going from #138,304 to #146,495.
FAQ
Thielking surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Thielking?
Name Census estimates that about 131 living Americans carry the surname Thielking. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,616,445 residents.
How common is Thielking?
Thielking ranks #146,495 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 114 people with the surname Thielking. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (131), 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 Thielking.
Has Thielking become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Thielking went from 121 recorded bearers to 114. That is a decrease of 7 (-5.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #138,304 to #146,495.
What does the Census say about the background of Thielking?
Among Census respondents with the surname Thielking, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (4.4%). 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 Thielking in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.7% (100 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Thielking appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.7%), Two or More Races (5.3%), Asian/Pacific Islander (4.4%). 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 Thielking (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 Thielking mean?
A locational surname derived from a place name meaning "king's woods" or "royal woods." 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 Thielking (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 Thielking?
Find out how many people are called Thielking on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.