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

Walke, 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 Walke surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Walke in America

Walke is the 24629th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Walke surname appeared 1,014 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Walke.

We can also compare 2010 data for Walke 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 Walke

The surname WALKE has its origins in England and dates back to the late 12th century. It is derived from the Old English words 'walc' or 'wealc', meaning 'a stranger' or 'foreigner'. The earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Feet of Fines records from Norfolk in 1198, where it appears as 'le Walke'.

In the 13th century, the name was also recorded in various other regions of England, including Essex, Cambridgeshire, and Lincolnshire. It is believed that the name may have initially been given as a nickname to someone who had a distinctive way of walking or perhaps to someone who was a wanderer or traveler.

The WALKE surname is not listed in the Domesday Book, which was a survey of land ownership commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. However, the name is mentioned in several other medieval records, such as the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire from 1190, where it appears as 'Walche'.

One of the earliest recorded bearers of the WALKE surname was John le Walke, who was mentioned in the Assize Rolls of Staffordshire in 1284. Another notable individual was Robert Walke, a merchant from Bristol, who was recorded in the city's Guild Rolls in 1392.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, the WALKE surname began to spread to other parts of England, including London and the surrounding areas. One notable figure from this period was William Walke, a mercer (textile merchant) from London, who was born in 1562.

In the 18th century, the WALKE surname also gained a presence in other parts of the British Isles, including Scotland and Ireland. One notable Scotsman with this surname was James Walke, a minister from Aberdeenshire, who lived from 1670 to 1742.

Another significant bearer of the WALKE surname was Sir Patrick Walke, an Irish baronet and Member of Parliament, who was born in 1717 and died in 1789. He represented the constituency of Roscommon in the Irish House of Commons.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Walke

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

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 Walke 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 Walke 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 Walke was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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