Explore the Family Name Berkman
The meaning of Berkman
1. Dutch: topographic name for someone who lived by a birch tree or in a birch wood, from Middle Dutch berke ‘birch’ + man ‘man’. 2. Jewish (Ashkenazic): variant of Berke. 3. German and Scandinavian: variant of Bergmann and Bergman and, in North America, (also) an altered form of these. 4. Possibly also an Americanized form of German (Westphalia) Berkemann: habitational name for someone from Berka (see Berka), formed with -mann ‘man’. Some characteristic forenames: Jewish Aron, Aaron David, Eliezer, Meyer, Yaacov, Yakov.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Berkman in the United States?
Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the surname Berkman has seen a slight increase in popularity from 2000 to 2010. In 2000, it ranked 17,334 in terms of popularity and jumped slightly to 17,063 by 2010, exhibiting a change of 1.56%. Similarly, the count of individuals bearing this surname also increased from 1,503 in 2000 to 1,664 in 2010, indicating a growth rate of 10.71%. Despite these increases, the proportion of people with the Berkman surname per 100k population remained the same at 0.56.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #17,334 | #17,063 | 1.56% |
| Count | 1,503 | 1,664 | 10.71% |
| Proportion per 100k | 0.56 | 0.56 | 0% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Berkman
In terms of ethnic identity, the Decennial U.S. Census reveals that the majority of individuals with the surname Berkman identified as White, although there was a slight decrease in this group from 96.74% in 2000 to 94.41% in 2010. The second most common ethnicity was Hispanic, which saw a significant rise of 134.93% over the decade, from 1.46% in 2000 to 3.43% in 2010. The number of Berkmans identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander dropped from 0.47% to zero during this time period, while those identifying as two or more races decreased by 36.28%, from 1.13% to 0.72%. Notably, there were no Berkmans who identified as American Indian and Alaskan Native in either census year, but there was a new appearance of Black Berkmans in 2010 at 0.78%.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 96.74% | 94.41% | -2.41% |
| Hispanic | 1.46% | 3.43% | 134.93% |
| Black | 0% | 0.78% | 0% |
| Two or More Races | 1.13% | 0.72% | -36.28% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 0.47% | 0% | 0% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0% | 0% | 0% |