2000
#13,989
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,979
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.73
Rare Last name
Yunker
A Dutch/German surname denoting a young lord or junior aristocrat.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,132 Americans carry the last name Yunker. That puts it at #15,207 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.62 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 160,767 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Yunker 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
2.1K
1 in 160,767
Census rank
#15,207
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,859 bearers of the surname Yunker in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.62 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 15207th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Yunker, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (2.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Yunker
The surname Yunker has its origins rooted in the German and Dutch languages, emerging from medieval Europe. The name is derived from the Middle High German term "junc herre," which translates to "young lord" or "young nobleman." This term historically signified a young noble who was often a squire or a lord’s apprentice. The Dutch equivalent, "jonker," carries a similar meaning and was indicative of lower nobility, including young aristocrats aspiring to knighthood.
One can trace the early records of the surname Yunker to regions within Germany and the Netherlands. The term’s noble connotation often linked bearers of this name to various familial houses of local and regional significance. In the Holy Roman Empire, the term "junker" described young men in feudal societies who belonged to the landed gentry but held no specific title beyond that. The evolving language variants allowed the name to morph in spelling and pronunciation, leading to records of Yunker, Junger, Junker, and Jonker in different areas.
The Yunker name appears in historical documents dating back to the medieval period, reinforcing its noble affiliation. A reference can be found in an early 14th-century feudal roll from the Rhineland, listing a Hartmann Yunker as a landholder. The German city-states often kept meticulous property records, showing the presence of the Yunker family in regions along the Rhine River.
The name continued to be prominent in historical records in the following centuries. One notable person was Johann Julius Yunker (1646-1732), a German herbalist and physician whose works contributed to early modern medicine. His publications on pharmacology were well-regarded among contemporary European scholars.
In the late 18th century, the Yunker name traveled across the Atlantic, carried by immigrants seeking new opportunities. Hans Peter Yunker, born in 1762, is notable for his role in the early agricultural development in Pennsylvania, USA. His farming techniques and community leadership left a lasting impact on the region's settlement patterns.
Diving further into the 19th century, Christopher Friedrich Yunker (1823-1899) was a German-American businessman who established one of the earliest breweries in Wisconsin. His entrepreneurial spirit helped shape the burgeoning brewing industry in the Midwest, earning him local and regional acclaim.
In the post-medieval era, various spellings of the name evolved, yet the Yunker variation maintained a certain consistency in rural and urban records. Local town archives often reveal the fluctuating presence of the Yunker family, such as in 19th-century municipal records from Heidelberg, Germany. Here, Maria Yunker (1834-1901) was noted for her involvement in local charitable organizations and her efforts in improving education for women in the region.
The Yunker surname encapsulates a rich history, from its noble roots in medieval Europe to its influential bearers who contributed to various fields. Each recorded instance illustrates the name’s evolution and its lasting presence across continents and centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Yunker
Among Census respondents with the surname Yunker, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (2.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Yunker 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 Yunker surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.0% · 1,728
- Two or more races3.3% · 61
- Hispanic or Latino2.0% · 37
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 13
- Black or African American0.5% · 10
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Yunker
Yunker 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
#15,483
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,891
-88 bearers (-4.4%)
Per 100,000 0.64
Rank movement Down 1,494 places
2020
#15,207
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,859
-32 bearers (-1.7%)
Per 100,000 0.62
Rank movement Up 276 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,989 | 1,979 | 0.73 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #15,483 | 1,891 | 0.64 | -88 bearers (-4.4%) | Down 1,494 places |
| 2020 | #15,207 | 1,859 | 0.62 | -32 bearers (-1.7%) | Up 276 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 Yunker 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 | #15,483 | #15,207 | 1.8% |
| Count | 1,891 | 1,859 | -1.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.64 | 0.62 | -2.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Yunker bearers went from 1,891 to 1,859 (-1.7% change). The surname moved up 276 positions in the national ranking, going from #15,483 to #15,207.
FAQ
Yunker surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Yunker?
Name Census estimates that about 2,132 living Americans carry the surname Yunker. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 160,767 residents.
How common is Yunker?
Yunker ranks #15,207 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.62 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 1,859 people with the surname Yunker. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,132), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.62 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.62 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 Yunker.
Has Yunker become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Yunker went from 1,891 recorded bearers to 1,859. That is a decrease of 32 (-1.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #15,483 to #15,207.
What does the Census say about the background of Yunker?
Among Census respondents with the surname Yunker, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (2.0%). 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 Yunker in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.0% (1,728 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Yunker appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.0%), Two or More Races (3.3%), Hispanic (2.0%). 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 Yunker (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 Yunker mean?
A Dutch/German surname denoting a young lord or junior aristocrat. 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 Yunker (0.62 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 surname Yunker?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.