2000
#51,119
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 383
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.14
Very Rare Last name
Tanke
A variant spelling of the German surname Tanke, referring to a reservoir or cistern.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 400 Americans carry the last name Tanke. That puts it at #62,049 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.12 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 856,886 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Tanke 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
400
1 in 856,886
Census rank
#62,049
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
349
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 349 bearers of the surname Tanke in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.12 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 62049th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Tanke, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.0%) and Black (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Tanke
The surname Tanke has its roots in Germany, tracing back to the late medieval period. It is believed to have originated as a descriptive nickname derived from the Middle Low German word "tanke," meaning "skinny" or "slender." This suggests that the name was initially bestowed upon someone of a slender physique.
During the 13th and 14th centuries, the Tanke surname appeared in various records and documents across the German states, particularly in regions where Low German dialects were spoken, such as northern Germany and the Netherlands. Variations in spelling, such as Tanken and Tancke, were common in those early days.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the Tanke name can be found in the Bremisches Urkundenbuch, a collection of historical documents from the city of Bremen, dating back to the late 13th century. Another notable reference is in the Lüneburg Lehnregister, a feudal register from the 14th century, which lists individuals with the Tanke surname.
In the 16th century, the Tanke name appeared in the records of the Hanseatic League, a powerful commercial and defensive confederation of merchant guilds and cities in northern Europe. This suggests that the Tanke family may have been involved in trade and commerce during that era.
Among the notable historical figures bearing the Tanke surname, one can mention Johann Tanke (1604-1667), a German theologian and author from Saxony, and Wilhelm Tanke (1792-1863), a Prussian lawyer and politician who served as a member of the Prussian National Assembly in the mid-19th century.
Another individual of note was Friedrich Tanke (1819-1891), a German architect and urban planner who made significant contributions to the development of the city of Hamburg in the late 19th century. His work included the design of the Hamburger Hof hotel and the renovation of the Hamburg City Hall.
In the realm of literature, the name Tanke is associated with the German writer and poet Walther Tanke (1878-1938), whose works often explored themes of nature and the rural life of his native Silesia region.
Lastly, one cannot overlook the legacy of Gertrud Tanke (1903-1981), a German artist and sculptor renowned for her expressive figurative works and her innovative use of materials such as concrete and steel.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Tanke
Among Census respondents with the surname Tanke, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.0%) and Black (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Tanke 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 Tanke surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White95.7% · 334
- Hispanic or Latino2.0% · 7
- Black or African American0.9% · 3
- Two or more races0.9% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Tanke
Tanke 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
#55,255
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 372
-11 bearers (-2.9%)
Per 100,000 0.13
Rank movement Down 4,136 places
2020
#62,049
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 349
-23 bearers (-6.2%)
Per 100,000 0.12
Rank movement Down 6,794 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #51,119 | 383 | 0.14 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #55,255 | 372 | 0.13 | -11 bearers (-2.9%) | Down 4,136 places |
| 2020 | #62,049 | 349 | 0.12 | -23 bearers (-6.2%) | Down 6,794 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 Tanke 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 | #55,255 | #62,049 | -12.3% |
| Count | 372 | 349 | -6.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.13 | 0.12 | -10.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Tanke bearers went from 372 to 349 (-6.2% change). The surname moved down 6,794 positions in the national ranking, going from #55,255 to #62,049.
FAQ
Tanke surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Tanke?
Name Census estimates that about 400 living Americans carry the surname Tanke. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 856,886 residents.
How common is Tanke?
Tanke ranks #62,049 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.12 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 349 people with the surname Tanke. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (400), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.12 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.12 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 Tanke.
Has Tanke become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Tanke went from 372 recorded bearers to 349. That is a decrease of 23 (-6.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #55,255 to #62,049.
What does the Census say about the background of Tanke?
Among Census respondents with the surname Tanke, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.0%) and Black (0.9%). 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 Tanke in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.7% (334 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Tanke appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (95.7%), Hispanic (2.0%), Black (0.9%). 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 Tanke (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 Tanke mean?
A variant spelling of the German surname Tanke, referring to a reservoir or cistern. 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 Tanke (0.12 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 common is the surname Tanke?
Find out how many people have the last name Tanke on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.