2010
#153,769
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 106
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Urke
A surname derived from a Middle English word meaning servant or retainer.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 125 Americans carry the last name Urke. That puts it at #150,205 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,742,035 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Urke 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
125
1 in 2,742,035
Census rank
#150,205
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
109
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 109 bearers of the surname Urke in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 150205th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Urke, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.6%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Urke
The surname URKE has its origins traced back to the German region, particularly in areas close to the Rhine River. The name is believed to have derived from the Old German word "urk," which meant a container or vessel. This suggests that the early bearers of this surname may have been associated with occupations related to pottery, ceramics, or container-making.
Historically, the name URKE can be found in several ancient records and manuscripts from the medieval period. One notable reference is found in the Liber Censualis, a tax register compiled in the 13th century, which lists an individual named Henricus Urke residing in the town of Mainz.
The earliest recorded example of the URKE surname dates back to the 14th century, when a certain Johannes Urke was mentioned in the church records of the city of Cologne in the year 1375. In the same century, another individual named Gerhard Urke was documented in the municipal archives of the town of Aachen, located in the western part of Germany.
During the 16th century, the name URKE appeared in various parts of Germany, with slight variations in spelling, such as Urck and Urcke. One notable individual from this period was Hans Urke, a merchant from the city of Bremen, who was born in 1532 and died in 1598.
In the 17th century, the URKE surname gained prominence in the region of Saxony, where a family of nobility bore this name. One of the most notable figures from this lineage was Friedrich von Urke, a military commander who served in the Thirty Years' War (1618-1648) and was born in 1597 and died in 1662.
Another notable bearer of the URKE surname was Johann Urke, a renowned scholar and theologian from the city of Leipzig, who lived between 1671 and 1743. He made significant contributions to the field of Protestant theology and authored several influential works during his lifetime.
As the surname spread across various regions of Germany, it also found its way into other parts of Europe, particularly in neighboring countries like the Netherlands and Belgium, where variations like Urken and Urkens were commonly used.
Throughout its history, the URKE surname has been associated with individuals from diverse professions and backgrounds, including artisans, merchants, scholars, military personnel, and nobility, reflecting the rich tapestry of German culture and society.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Urke
Among Census respondents with the surname Urke, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.6%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Urke 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 Urke surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.6% · 102
- Two or more races4.6% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.8% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Urke
Urke appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#150,205
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 109
+3 bearers (+2.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 3,564 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #153,769 | 106 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #150,205 | 109 | 0.04 | +3 bearers (+2.8%) | Up 3,564 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 Urke 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 | #153,769 | #150,205 | 2.3% |
| Count | 106 | 109 | 2.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -8.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Urke bearers went from 106 to 109 (+2.8% change). The surname moved up 3,564 positions in the national ranking, going from #153,769 to #150,205.
FAQ
Urke surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Urke?
Name Census estimates that about 125 living Americans carry the surname Urke. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,742,035 residents.
How common is Urke?
Urke ranks #150,205 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 109 people with the surname Urke. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (125), 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 Urke.
Has Urke become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Urke went from 106 recorded bearers to 109. That is an increase of 3 (+2.8%). In the national ranking it rose from #153,769 to #150,205.
What does the Census say about the background of Urke?
Among Census respondents with the surname Urke, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.6%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.8%). 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 Urke in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.6% (102 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Urke appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.6%), Two or More Races (4.6%), American Indian/Alaska Native (1.8%). 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 Urke (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 Urke mean?
A surname derived from a Middle English word meaning servant or retainer. 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 Urke (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 have the last name Urke?
See how common the surname Urke is on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.