Explore the Family Name Guelker

The meaning of Guelker

North German (Gülker): habitational name for someone from the city in North Rhine-Westphalia now called Jülich, derived from Gülke, its old Rhenish name. In the 4th century the city was named in Latin as Juliacum ‘settlement of Julius’, and in 1094 it is documented as Guliche. Compare Gulker.

Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.

How common is the last name Guelker in the United States?

Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the popularity of the surname Guelker has seen a slight decrease between 2000 and 2010. The ranking of the Guelker name dropped from 59,769 in 2000 to 68,949 in 2010, marking a decline of 15.36%. The actual count of individuals with the Guelker surname also diminished during this decade, going down by 9.81% from 316 in 2000 to 285 in 2010. Consequently, the proportion of the Guelker surname per 100k people also fell by 16.67%, from 0.12 in 2000 to 0.1 in 2010.

20002010Change
Rank#59,769#68,949-15.36%
Count316285-9.81%
Proportion per 100k0.120.1-16.67%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Guelker

Regarding the ethnic identity associated with the Guelker surname, the Decennial U.S. Census data shows that it is predominantly linked to White ethnicity. In 2000, a significant 97.47% of individuals with the Guelker surname identified as White, which slightly decreased to 96.49% in 2010. Meanwhile, the proportion of individuals identifying as Hispanic showed a sharp increase of 84.74%, albeit from a small base, moving from 1.90% in 2000 to 3.51% in 2010. There were no recorded changes for Asian/Pacific Islander, Black, American Indian and Alaskan Native, or those identifying as two or more races.

20002010Change
White97.47%96.49%-1.01%
Hispanic1.9%3.51%84.74%
Asian/Pacific Islander0%0%0%
Two or More Races0%0%0%
Black0%0%0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0%0%0%