Explore the Family Name Oelkers

The meaning of Oelkers

North German (rarely Ölkers): patronymic from Oelke 1.

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

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

Based on the decennial U.S. Census data, the surname Oelkers has seen an increase in popularity from 2000 to 2010. In year 2000, Oelkers was ranked 41,722, but by 2010 its rank had improved to 36,525, indicating a significant rise of 12.46 percent. The count of individuals bearing this surname also increased from 491 in 2000 to 612 in 2010, marking a 24.64 percent increase. The proportion per 100,000 people also saw a growth of 16.67 percent over the decade.

20002010Change
Rank#41,722#36,52512.46%
Count49161224.64%
Proportion per 100k0.180.2116.67%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Oelkers

Regarding ethnicity, the Decennial U.S. Census data reveals that the majority of individuals with the Oelkers surname identified as White in both 2000 and 2010, with a tiny decrease of 0.05 percent over the decade. There were no records of individuals identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander or Black in 2000, but by 2010, approximately 0.98 percent identified as Asian/Pacific Islander. Similarly, the Hispanic representation among Oelkers grew to 0.98 percent in 2010 from zero in 2000. The category of those identifying with two or more races showed a decline, going from 1.22 percent in 2000 to zero in 2010. The American Indian and Alaskan Native category remained stable at zero percent for both years.

20002010Change
White97.76%97.71%-0.05%
Asian/Pacific Islander0%0.98%0%
Hispanic0%0.98%0%
Two or More Races1.22%0%0%
Black0%0%0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0%0%0%