2000
#10,893
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,682
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.99
Rare Last name
Warnke
Derived from a Germanic personal name composed of the elements war, meaning "guard," and the suffix -ke, denoting affection.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,022 Americans carry the last name Warnke. That puts it at #11,436 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.88 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 113,420 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Warnke 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
3.0K
1 in 113,420
Census rank
#11,436
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,635 bearers of the surname Warnke in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.88 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11436th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Warnke, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (3.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Warnke
The surname WARNKE is of German origin, originating in the northern regions of Germany during the late Middle Ages. The name is derived from the Old German word "warn," meaning "to guard" or "to warn," suggesting that the earliest bearers of this name may have been sentries, guards, or watchmen.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name WARNKE can be found in the records of the city of Hamburg, where a certain Johann WARNKE is mentioned as a merchant in the year 1487. The name also appears in various church records and municipal documents from the 16th and 17th centuries in the regions of Mecklenburg, Pomerania, and Brandenburg.
During the 17th century, the WARNKE family gained prominence in the town of Neubrandenburg, where several members held positions of authority in the local government and church. Notable individuals from this period include Johann Friedrich WARNKE (1628-1702), who served as the mayor of Neubrandenburg, and his son, Christian WARNKE (1665-1734), a respected Lutheran pastor.
As the WARNKE family spread across northern Germany, variations in the spelling of the name emerged, such as WARNKEN, WARNECKE, and WARNICK. These spellings were often influenced by regional dialects and local scribes' interpretations.
In the 19th century, several individuals bearing the surname WARNKE achieved notable accomplishments. Carl Friedrich WARNKE (1808-1888) was a German painter and lithographer known for his landscapes and architectural renderings. Friedrich WARNKE (1830-1901) was a prominent jurist and legal scholar who served as a professor at the University of Rostock.
Another noteworthy figure was Max WARNKE (1867-1944), a German architect who specialized in the design of schools and public buildings. His works include the St. Andreas School in Berlin and the Gründerzeit-style residential buildings in the Prenzlauer Berg neighborhood.
As the WARNKE family spread beyond Germany, the name took root in other parts of Europe and eventually in North America. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name in the United States can be found in the immigration records of the Port of New York, where a Johann WARNKE from Pomerania arrived in 1856.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Warnke
Among Census respondents with the surname Warnke, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (3.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Warnke 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 Warnke surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.9% · 2,421
- Two or more races3.4% · 89
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 80
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 21
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 16
- Black or African American0.3% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Warnke
Warnke 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
#11,395
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,767
+85 bearers (+3.2%)
Per 100,000 0.94
Rank movement Down 502 places
2020
#11,436
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,635
-132 bearers (-4.8%)
Per 100,000 0.88
Rank movement Down 41 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,893 | 2,682 | 0.99 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,395 | 2,767 | 0.94 | +85 bearers (+3.2%) | Down 502 places |
| 2020 | #11,436 | 2,635 | 0.88 | -132 bearers (-4.8%) | Down 41 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 Warnke 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 | #11,395 | #11,436 | -0.4% |
| Count | 2,767 | 2,635 | -4.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.94 | 0.88 | -6.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Warnke bearers went from 2,767 to 2,635 (-4.8% change). The surname moved down 41 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,395 to #11,436.
FAQ
Warnke surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Warnke?
Name Census estimates that about 3,022 living Americans carry the surname Warnke. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 113,420 residents.
How common is Warnke?
Warnke ranks #11,436 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.88 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,635 people with the surname Warnke. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,022), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.88 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.88 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Warnke.
Has Warnke become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Warnke went from 2,767 recorded bearers to 2,635. That is a decrease of 132 (-4.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #11,395 to #11,436.
What does the Census say about the background of Warnke?
Among Census respondents with the surname Warnke, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (3.0%). 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 Warnke in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.9% (2,421 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Warnke appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.9%), Two or More Races (3.4%), Hispanic (3.0%). 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 Warnke (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 Warnke mean?
Derived from a Germanic personal name composed of the elements war, meaning "guard," and the suffix -ke, denoting affection. 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 Warnke (0.88 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 share the surname Warnke?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.