2010
#156,044
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 104
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Merckx
A surname derived from the Middle Dutch word "merke," meaning a territorial marker or boundary stone.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 140 Americans carry the last name Merckx. That puts it at #140,525 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,448,245 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Merckx 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
140
1 in 2,448,245
Census rank
#140,525
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
122
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 122 bearers of the surname Merckx in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 140525th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Merckx, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.9%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Merckx
The surname Merckx is of Belgian origin and can be traced back to the 14th century. It is believed to have originated from the Dutch word "merck," meaning "mark" or "sign," and was likely used as a distinguishing name for someone who had a particular physical mark or feature.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Merckx can be found in the town of Tienen, in the Belgian province of Flemish Brabant, where it appears in a document dated 1387. The name was also present in other regions of modern-day Belgium, such as Limburg and Antwerp, during the late medieval period.
The Merckx surname has been associated with several notable individuals throughout history. One of the most famous bearers of the name was Eddy Merckx, a Belgian professional road cyclist who was born in 1945 and is widely regarded as one of the greatest cyclists of all time. He won numerous prestigious races, including the Tour de France and Giro d'Italia, and dominated the sport during the 1960s and 1970s.
Another prominent figure with the Merckx surname was Josse Merckx, a 16th-century Flemish painter and engraver who was active in Antwerp. He is best known for his religious and allegorical works, as well as his engravings of architectural designs.
In the 19th century, a Belgian politician named Auguste Merckx served as the mayor of Brussels from 1879 to 1881. He played a significant role in the development and modernization of the city during his tenure.
The name Merckx has also been associated with several places and locations in Belgium. For instance, the village of Meerbeek, located in the province of Flemish Brabant, was formerly known as "Meerbeke" or "Merckbeke," which may have been derived from the same root as the surname.
While the Merckx name has its origins in Belgium, it has since spread to other parts of the world due to migration and immigration. However, the highest concentration of individuals bearing this surname remains in its country of origin.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Merckx
Among Census respondents with the surname Merckx, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.9%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Merckx 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 Merckx surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.0% · 111
- Two or more races4.9% · 6
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.6% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Merckx
Merckx appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#140,525
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 122
+18 bearers (+17.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 15,519 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #156,044 | 104 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #140,525 | 122 | 0.04 | +18 bearers (+17.3%) | Up 15,519 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 Merckx 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 | #156,044 | #140,525 | 9.9% |
| Count | 104 | 122 | 17.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | 2.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Merckx bearers went from 104 to 122 (+17.3% change). The surname moved up 15,519 positions in the national ranking, going from #156,044 to #140,525.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Merckx
FAQ
Merckx surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Merckx?
Name Census estimates that about 140 living Americans carry the surname Merckx. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,448,245 residents.
How common is Merckx?
Merckx ranks #140,525 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 122 people with the surname Merckx. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (140), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Merckx.
Has Merckx become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Merckx went from 104 recorded bearers to 122. That is an increase of 18 (+17.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #156,044 to #140,525.
What does the Census say about the background of Merckx?
Among Census respondents with the surname Merckx, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.9%) and Hispanic (2.5%). 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 Merckx in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.0% (111 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Merckx appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.0%), Two or More Races (4.9%), Hispanic (2.5%). 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 Merckx (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 Merckx mean?
A surname derived from the Middle Dutch word "merke," meaning a territorial marker or boundary stone. 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 Merckx (0.04 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 Americans have the surname Merckx?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.