2000
#7,476
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,107
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.52
Rare Last name
Flickinger
A German occupational surname referring to a person who braids or weaves baskets or rugs.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,590 Americans carry the last name Flickinger. That puts it at #7,944 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.34 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 74,674 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Flickinger 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
4.6K
1 in 74,674
Census rank
#7,944
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,003 bearers of the surname Flickinger in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.34 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7944th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Flickinger, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.9%) and Hispanic (2.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Flickinger
The surname Flickinger is of German origin, tracing its roots back to the 14th century. It is believed to have originated from the areas of Saxony and Bavaria, where early variations of the name, such as Fleckinger and Flekinger, were found.
The name is derived from the Old High German word "flecken," which means "to spot" or "to stain." This suggests that Flickinger may have initially referred to an occupation or a nickname related to dyeing or staining fabrics or materials.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Nuremberg Chronicles, a renowned 15th-century German illustrated world history book. The entry mentions a "Hans Fleckinger," a merchant from Augsburg, who was involved in trade with the Italian city-states.
In the 16th century, the name appeared in various records from the Duchy of Württemberg, including a mention of a "Georg Flickinger" in the town of Schorndorf in 1542. This region played a significant role in the spread and evolution of the name.
The Thirty Years' War (1618-1648) saw many German families, including those with the surname Flickinger, migrate to different parts of Europe and beyond. One notable example is Johann Flickinger (1616-1688), a German-born Mennonite minister who settled in the Netherlands and later traveled to Pennsylvania in the late 17th century.
In the United States, the Flickinger name can be traced back to the early 18th century, with many immigrants arriving from the Palatinate region of Germany. Peter Flickinger (1725-1809), a farmer from Pennsylvania, served in the Revolutionary War and is considered one of the earliest bearers of the name in America.
Other notable individuals with the surname Flickinger include:
1. Robert Flickinger (1881-1963), an American botanist and expert on cacti, known for his extensive fieldwork in the southwestern United States and Mexico.
2. Alice Flickinger (1889-1965), an American educator and the first woman to serve as president of a co-educational liberal arts college in the United States, leading Athens College in Alabama from 1934 to 1948.
3. Daniel Flickinger (1824-1899), a prominent businessman and philanthropist in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, who co-founded the Pittsburgh and Castle Shannon Railroad Company.
4. Roy Flickinger (1888-1953), an American actor and director active in the early days of Hollywood, best known for his work in silent films and vaudeville.
5. Otto Flickinger (1892-1944), a German-born American architect who designed several notable buildings in Los Angeles, including the iconic Pantages Theatre.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Flickinger
Among Census respondents with the surname Flickinger, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.9%) and Hispanic (2.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Flickinger 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 Flickinger surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.5% · 3,741
- Two or more races2.9% · 116
- Hispanic or Latino2.4% · 98
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 29
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 11
- Black or African American0.2% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Flickinger
Flickinger 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
#8,093
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,097
-10 bearers (-0.2%)
Per 100,000 1.39
Rank movement Down 617 places
2020
#7,944
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,003
-94 bearers (-2.3%)
Per 100,000 1.34
Rank movement Up 149 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,476 | 4,107 | 1.52 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,093 | 4,097 | 1.39 | -10 bearers (-0.2%) | Down 617 places |
| 2020 | #7,944 | 4,003 | 1.34 | -94 bearers (-2.3%) | Up 149 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 Flickinger 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 | #8,093 | #7,944 | 1.8% |
| Count | 4,097 | 4,003 | -2.3% |
| Per 100K | 1.39 | 1.34 | -3.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Flickinger bearers went from 4,097 to 4,003 (-2.3% change). The surname moved up 149 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,093 to #7,944.
FAQ
Flickinger surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Flickinger?
Name Census estimates that about 4,590 living Americans carry the surname Flickinger. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 74,674 residents.
How common is Flickinger?
Flickinger ranks #7,944 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.34 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 4,003 people with the surname Flickinger. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,590), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.34 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.34 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 Flickinger.
Has Flickinger become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Flickinger went from 4,097 recorded bearers to 4,003. That is a decrease of 94 (-2.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #8,093 to #7,944.
What does the Census say about the background of Flickinger?
Among Census respondents with the surname Flickinger, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.9%) and Hispanic (2.4%). 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 Flickinger in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.5% (3,741 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Flickinger appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.5%), Two or More Races (2.9%), Hispanic (2.4%). 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 Flickinger (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 Flickinger mean?
A German occupational surname referring to a person who braids or weaves baskets or rugs. 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 Flickinger (1.34 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 Flickinger?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.