2000
#18,909
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,336
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.50
Rare Last name
Buske
Scandinavian surname derived from Old Norse "buski" meaning bush or shrub.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,253 Americans carry the last name Buske. That puts it at #23,906 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.37 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 273,547 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Buske 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
1.3K
1 in 273,547
Census rank
#23,906
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,093 bearers of the surname Buske in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.37 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 23906th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Buske, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.9%) and Two or More Races (1.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Buske
The surname Buske originated in Germany and can be traced back to the 13th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old High German word "busc," meaning "bush" or "shrub," suggesting that the name may have been given to someone who lived near a dense thicket or wooded area.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Buske can be found in the Annalen des Historischen Vereins für den Niederrhein, a collection of historical records from the Lower Rhine region, where a person named Henricus Buske is mentioned in 1274. This suggests that the name was already established in that area during the medieval period.
In the 15th century, the name appeared in various forms, such as Buschen and Buschken, indicating its evolution over time. These variations likely stemmed from regional dialects and pronunciation differences.
The Buske surname has been associated with several notable individuals throughout history. One of the earliest recorded examples is Johannes Buske, a German theologian and philosopher who lived from 1506 to 1582. He was known for his influential writings on Protestant theology during the Reformation.
Another notable figure was Carl Buske, a German publisher and bookseller who lived from 1830 to 1905. He founded the publishing house C. Buske Verlag, which specialized in academic and scholarly works, particularly in the fields of linguistics and philology.
In the 19th century, Johann Buske (1810-1884) was a prominent German architect and urban planner. He was responsible for designing several notable buildings in Berlin, including the Friedrichstadtpalast, a famous theater and entertainment venue.
Moving into the 20th century, Erwin Buske (1890-1947) was a German naval officer who served during World War I and World War II. He played a significant role in the development of naval tactics and strategies during his military career.
Finally, Gisela Buske (1928-2022) was a German-born American linguist and scholar who made significant contributions to the field of second language acquisition and foreign language teaching. Her research focused on the cognitive processes involved in language learning.
These examples illustrate the Buske surname's enduring presence throughout German history, spanning various professions and fields of expertise, from theology and publishing to architecture, military service, and academia.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Buske
Among Census respondents with the surname Buske, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.9%) and Two or More Races (1.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Buske 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 Buske surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White95.7% · 1,046
- Hispanic or Latino1.9% · 21
- Two or more races1.7% · 19
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 5
- Black or African American0.2% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Buske
Buske 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
#19,747
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,364
+28 bearers (+2.1%)
Per 100,000 0.46
Rank movement Down 838 places
2020
#23,906
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,093
-271 bearers (-19.9%)
Per 100,000 0.37
Rank movement Down 4,159 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #18,909 | 1,336 | 0.50 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #19,747 | 1,364 | 0.46 | +28 bearers (+2.1%) | Down 838 places |
| 2020 | #23,906 | 1,093 | 0.37 | -271 bearers (-19.9%) | Down 4,159 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 Buske 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 | #19,747 | #23,906 | -21.1% |
| Count | 1,364 | 1,093 | -19.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.46 | 0.37 | -20.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Buske bearers went from 1,364 to 1,093 (-19.9% change). The surname moved down 4,159 positions in the national ranking, going from #19,747 to #23,906.
FAQ
Buske surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Buske?
Name Census estimates that about 1,253 living Americans carry the surname Buske. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 273,547 residents.
How common is Buske?
Buske ranks #23,906 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.37 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 1,093 people with the surname Buske. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,253), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.37 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.37 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 Buske.
Has Buske become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Buske went from 1,364 recorded bearers to 1,093. That is a decrease of 271 (-19.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #19,747 to #23,906.
What does the Census say about the background of Buske?
Among Census respondents with the surname Buske, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.9%) and Two or More Races (1.7%). 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 Buske in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.7% (1,046 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Buske appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (95.7%), Hispanic (1.9%), Two or More Races (1.7%). 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 Buske (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 Buske mean?
Scandinavian surname derived from Old Norse "buski" meaning bush or shrub. 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 Buske (0.37 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 Buske?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.