2000
#8,472
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,583
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.33
Rare Last name
Bakke
A Norwegian habitational surname derived from any of several farms named Bakke, meaning "hill" or "ridge".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,754 Americans carry the last name Bakke. That puts it at #9,499 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.10 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 91,304 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Bakke 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
3.8K
1 in 91,304
Census rank
#9,499
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,274 bearers of the surname Bakke in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.10 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9499th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Bakke, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.5%) and Hispanic (3.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Bakke
The surname Bakke is of Norwegian origin, first appearing in records dating back to the 12th century. It is derived from the Old Norse word "bakki," which means "ridge" or "hill," suggesting that the original bearers of this name may have resided near a prominent geographical feature such as a hill or a ridge.
In the early days, the name was written in various forms, including Bakke, Bakki, and Bakkr. One of the earliest recorded instances of this surname can be found in the Diplomatarium Norvegicum, a collection of medieval Norwegian charters and documents, where a person named Erlingr Bakki is mentioned in 1225.
The name Bakke was particularly prominent in the western regions of Norway, such as the counties of Rogaland and Hordaland, where many families bearing this surname can be traced back to the Middle Ages. One notable person from this era was Erling Bakke, a Norwegian chieftain who lived in the late 13th century and is mentioned in several sagas.
As the name spread across Norway, it also took on various regional variations and spellings, such as Bakkene, Bakkene, and Bakkene. One of the earliest recorded instances of this variant can be found in the Diplomatarium Norvegicum, where a person named Tore Bakkene is mentioned in 1348.
During the Viking Age, some Norwegians bearing the name Bakke may have traveled and settled in other parts of Europe and the British Isles. There are records of individuals with the name Bakke or similar spellings appearing in medieval documents from Iceland, the Faroe Islands, and even parts of Scotland and England.
One notable historical figure with the surname Bakke was Hans Bakke, a Norwegian merchant and explorer who lived in the late 16th century. He is known for his expeditions to the Arctic region and his detailed accounts of the Sami people and their way of life.
Another prominent individual was Olav Bakke, a Norwegian resistance fighter during World War II. He was born in 1901 and played a crucial role in the underground movement against the German occupation of Norway, risking his life to gather intelligence and aid the Allied forces.
Throughout the centuries, the surname Bakke has been carried by individuals from various walks of life, including farmers, craftsmen, soldiers, and scholars. Some examples include Nils Bakke, a Norwegian poet and writer born in 1853, and Sigrid Bakke, a renowned Norwegian sculptor who lived from 1892 to 1975.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Bakke
Among Census respondents with the surname Bakke, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.5%) and Hispanic (3.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Bakke 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 Bakke surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.8% · 3,004
- Two or more races3.5% · 113
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 101
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 29
- Black or African American0.5% · 17
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Bakke
Bakke 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
#9,257
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,517
-66 bearers (-1.8%)
Per 100,000 1.19
Rank movement Down 785 places
2020
#9,499
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,274
-243 bearers (-6.9%)
Per 100,000 1.10
Rank movement Down 242 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,472 | 3,583 | 1.33 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #9,257 | 3,517 | 1.19 | -66 bearers (-1.8%) | Down 785 places |
| 2020 | #9,499 | 3,274 | 1.10 | -243 bearers (-6.9%) | Down 242 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 Bakke 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 | #9,257 | #9,499 | -2.6% |
| Count | 3,517 | 3,274 | -6.9% |
| Per 100K | 1.19 | 1.10 | -8.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Bakke bearers went from 3,517 to 3,274 (-6.9% change). The surname moved down 242 positions in the national ranking, going from #9,257 to #9,499.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Bakke
FAQ
Bakke surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Bakke?
Name Census estimates that about 3,754 living Americans carry the surname Bakke. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 91,304 residents.
How common is Bakke?
Bakke ranks #9,499 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.10 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 3,274 people with the surname Bakke. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,754), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.1 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.10 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 Bakke.
Has Bakke become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Bakke went from 3,517 recorded bearers to 3,274. That is a decrease of 243 (-6.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #9,257 to #9,499.
What does the Census say about the background of Bakke?
Among Census respondents with the surname Bakke, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.5%) and Hispanic (3.1%). 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 Bakke in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.8% (3,004 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Bakke appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.8%), Two or More Races (3.5%), Hispanic (3.1%). 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 Bakke (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 Bakke mean?
A Norwegian habitational surname derived from any of several farms named Bakke, meaning "hill" or "ridge". 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 Bakke (1.10 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 Bakke?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.