The Menke surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 4,498 people carried this name — #7,399 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 65,800 people counted. That is up 1% from 4,463 in 2000.

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In Poland’s population register

66 people named Menke have a registered home in Poland.

Of the 109 in Poland’s national register, these are the ones with a permanent address on file. They live in 10 of Poland’s 16 voivodeships, most of all in Greater Poland.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they live today

Greater Poland 18
Lower Silesian 14
Lesser Poland 8
Masovian 7
Kuyavian-Pomeranian 5
Łódź 4
West Pomeranian 4
Lubusz 2

PESEL register, Ministry of Digital Affairs of Poland (dane.gov.pl) — CC0 · living people by voivodeship of permanent residence, 20 January 2026.

In Switzerland’s population statistics

40 people named Menke live in Switzerland.

They live in 6 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Zurich.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they live today

Zurich 14
Aargau 9
Geneva 5
Bern 4
Basel-Stadt 4
Lucerne 4

Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO), «Surnames of the permanent resident population by canton», 2025, opendata.swiss/en/dataset/nachnamen-der-standigen-wohnbevolkerung-nach-kanton3 · names with fewer than 3 bearers in a canton are not published.

In France’s civil register

France’s register of deaths holds 34 people named Menke.

6 of them were born outside France. Those born in France came from 4 départements, most often Marne.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they were born

Born outside France 6
Marne 20
Yonne 6
Aisne 1
Côte-d’Or 1

Fichier des personnes décédées, INSEE — Licence Ouverte 2.0 · deaths recorded in France since 1970, by place of birth.

In print

Menke in American newspapers,
1909–1922.

Newspaper page from Nord Stern carrying the name Menke
Nord Stern 1914-04-10
Newspaper page from The Telegraph-courier carrying the name Menke
The Telegraph-courier 1922-02-02
Newspaper page from Yellowstone Monitor carrying the name Menke
Yellowstone Monitor 1909-05-27

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 17,408 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Menke in Australian newspapers,
1870s–1950s.

132 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Menke. The most, 53, date from the 1920s. New South Wales has the most articles, but weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, the name stands out most in South Australia, at 2.1 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 56
South Australia 33
Queensland 14
Western Australia 14
Victoria 13
Tasmania 2

Trove, National Library of Australia (trove.nla.gov.au) · articles in its digitised newspapers that name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Menke.

Who carried it

People named Menke,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Heinrich Theodor Menke
    Heinrich Theodor Menke 1819–1892 · historian
  • Ludwig Menke
    Ludwig Menke 1822–1882 · artist
  • George Menke d. 1978 · American football player
  • Karl Ferdinand Menke 1772–1819
  • Karl Theodor Menke 1791–1861 · naturalist
  • Friedrich August Menke 1791–1872 · secondary school teacher

Wikidata (CC0) · portraits via Wikimedia Commons, shown cropped, in the public domain or CC0 · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Menke,
in the records of 6 countries.

Soldiers, farmers, migrants and neighbours who carried the name and left a trace in public archives. Everyone shown here died long ago or was born more than a century ago.

United States1,040 records

1,040 records of the Menke name in the United States
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 630
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 148
  • Other U.S. records 262
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Melvin E. Menke

    Born 1923 in Texas. Enlisted 1944 at Fort Sam Houston; farmer from Victoria County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1999, buried at Memory Gardens Cemetery, Victoria, Texas.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Anna-Caroline Menke

    Arrived at New York in 1850 aboard the Albert from Bremen, aged 10; farmer. From Osnabrueck, Germany; bound for New York.

    U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted)
  3. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record William H. Menke

    Born 1932; from Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania. U.S. Army, heavy weapons infantry leader; killed in action 1953 in North Korea.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain)

Showing 3 of 1,040 records for Menke in the United States.

Counts: U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · Sacramento County, Historic Burials (CC BY 4.0) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, 2009 (public domain).

Netherlands2,006 records

2,006 records of the Menke name in the Netherlands
  • Dutch civil registers (births, marriages, deaths) 1,106
  • Dutch population registers 802
  • Dutch church registers before 1811 98
  1. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Hendrik Menke

    Married in 1859 in Hoorn; smith. Died 1907 in Hoorn, aged 77.

    Open Archives, Noord-Hollands Archief (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Maria Margaretha Menke

    Married in 1888 in Emmen; labourer. Died 1942 in Emmen, aged 80.

    Open Archives, Drents Archief (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Herman Jacobus Menke

    Married in 1917 in Amsterdam; house painter. Died 1971 in De Bilt, aged 81.

    Open Archives, Noord-Hollands Archief (CC BY 4.0); Open Archives, Het Utrechts Archief (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 2,006 records for Menke in the Netherlands.

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain).

Germany846 records

846 records of the Menke name in Germany Germany's First World War casualty lists, 1914–1919
  1. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Franz Menke

    Born 1899; from Dröper, Iburg. Reported missing in the Prussian casualty list of 5 December 1918 (Infantry Regiment No. 368).

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)
  2. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Gustav Menke

    Born 1888; from Scharmbeck, Winsen a. d. Luhe. Reported wounded in the Prussian casualty list of 30 November 1918.

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)
  3. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Herbert Menke

    From Essen. Reported wounded in the Prussian casualty list of 28 February 1919 (Infantry Regiment No. 47).

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)

Showing 3 of 846 records for Menke in Germany.

Counts: Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Deutsche Verlustlisten, Prussian list 1116, 18 April 1918 (scan via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0).

France11 records

11 records of the Menke name in France France's national death register, 1970–2001
  1. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Jacques Paul Menke

    Born 1929 in Le Hérie-la-Viéville; died 1998 in Saint-Quentin (Aisne).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)
  2. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Christiane Jannine Menke

    Born 1930 in Reims; died 1978 in Reims (Marne).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)
  3. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Amelie Menke

    Born 1898 in Belgium; died 1995 in Neuilly-sur-Seine (Hauts-de-Seine).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)

Showing 3 of 11 records for Menke in France.

Counts: Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Death register of Nice, 1930, Archives départementales des Alpes-Maritimes (public domain).

Belgium6 records

6 records of the Menke name in Belgium Belgian civil registers (births, marriages, deaths)
  1. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Godeliva Menke

    Died 1878 in Voorde, aged 33.

    Open Archives, Erfgoedcel Denderland (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Koenraad Menke

    Died 1906 in Gent.

    Open Archives, Archief Gent (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Birth record Joannes Baptista Menke

    Born 1825 in Pollare.

    Open Archives, Erfgoedcel Denderland (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 6 records for Menke in Belgium.

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

Australia5 records

5 records of the Menke name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 3
  • Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 2
  1. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Hellmut Frederick A. Menke

    Retired of Moorabbin, Victoria; died 1974.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Bertha Ernestyna Menke

    Of Moorabbin, Victoria; died 1979.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 2 of 5 records for Menke in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Menke.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Menke is.
A volume says what happened to it.

Every page in the index is free and stays free. The Heritage Volume is the long form: the full paper trail, the arms, the crossing — bound, and yours.

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