2000
#72,022
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 252
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.09
Very Rare Last name
Brugge
A Germanic surname referring to someone from the town of Bruges in Belgium.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 240 Americans carry the last name Brugge. That puts it at #93,963 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.07 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,428,143 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Brugge 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
240
1 in 1,428,143
Census rank
#93,963
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
209
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 209 bearers of the surname Brugge in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.07 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 93963rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Brugge, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.7%) and Two or More Races (3.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Brugge
The surname Brugge has its origins in the Low Countries region of northwestern Europe, specifically in the city of Bruges (Brugge in Dutch) located in modern-day Belgium. The name likely dates back to the Middle Ages, when surnames derived from place names were common among the European nobility and merchant classes.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname Brugge can be traced back to the 12th century, when the city of Bruges was a prominent center of trade and commerce in the Flanders region. The name may have originated as a way to identify individuals who hailed from or had strong ties to this influential city.
In medieval documents and records, the name appears with various spellings, such as Brugge, Bruges, Brugghe, and Bruggen, reflecting the linguistic variations of the time. One notable early bearer of the name was Jan van Brugge, a Flemish merchant and diplomat who lived in the late 14th century and served as an ambassador for the Duke of Burgundy.
As the city of Bruges grew in importance during the Renaissance period, the surname Brugge likely gained greater prominence and spread beyond its original geographic boundaries. Notable individuals with this surname include Pieter Brugge (1499-1564), a Flemish painter and architect who designed several buildings in Bruges, and Adriaan Brugge (1541-1619), a Dutch scholar and theologian who served as a professor at the University of Leiden.
In the 17th century, the surname Brugge appeared in various records and documents across Europe, reflecting the mobility and migration patterns of the time. For instance, Johann Brugge (1625-1701) was a German composer and organist who lived and worked in the city of Lübeck, while Antonio Brugge (1670-1743) was an Italian painter active in Naples and Rome.
Another notable bearer of the surname was Willem Brugge (1788-1856), a Dutch military officer and colonial administrator who served as the Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies (modern-day Indonesia) from 1833 to 1836.
Throughout its history, the surname Brugge has maintained a strong association with its place of origin, the city of Bruges, and its cultural and economic significance in the Low Countries region. While the name may have undergone various spelling variations over time, its connection to this influential medieval city remains a defining characteristic of its origins and historical significance.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Brugge
Among Census respondents with the surname Brugge, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.7%) and Two or More Races (3.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Brugge 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 Brugge surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.5% · 187
- Hispanic or Latino5.7% · 12
- Two or more races3.3% · 7
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.4% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Brugge
Brugge 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
#77,522
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 247
-5 bearers (-2.0%)
Per 100,000 0.08
Rank movement Down 5,500 places
2020
#93,963
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 209
-38 bearers (-15.4%)
Per 100,000 0.07
Rank movement Down 16,441 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #72,022 | 252 | 0.09 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #77,522 | 247 | 0.08 | -5 bearers (-2.0%) | Down 5,500 places |
| 2020 | #93,963 | 209 | 0.07 | -38 bearers (-15.4%) | Down 16,441 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 Brugge 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 | #77,522 | #93,963 | -21.2% |
| Count | 247 | 209 | -15.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.08 | 0.07 | -12.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Brugge bearers went from 247 to 209 (-15.4% change). The surname moved down 16,441 positions in the national ranking, going from #77,522 to #93,963.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Brugge
FAQ
Brugge surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Brugge?
Name Census estimates that about 240 living Americans carry the surname Brugge. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,428,143 residents.
How common is Brugge?
Brugge ranks #93,963 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.07 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 209 people with the surname Brugge. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (240), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.07 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.07 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 Brugge.
Has Brugge become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Brugge went from 247 recorded bearers to 209. That is a decrease of 38 (-15.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #77,522 to #93,963.
What does the Census say about the background of Brugge?
Among Census respondents with the surname Brugge, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.7%) and Two or More Races (3.3%). 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 Brugge in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.5% (187 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Brugge appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.5%), Hispanic (5.7%), Two or More Races (3.3%). 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 Brugge (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 Brugge mean?
A Germanic surname referring to someone from the town of Bruges in Belgium. 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 Brugge (0.07 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 Brugge?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.