# Bourke (surname)

Source: https://namelineage.com/surname/bourke/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. Counts from the US Census Bureau; origin and etymology from Wiktionary; bearers from Wikidata. Data updated 2026-11-11.

A topographical surname from Anglo-Norman for someone who lived in a fortified place.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Origin | Norman |
| Type | place, taken from where an ancestor lived or came from |
| People in the US (2010 Census) | 2,514 |
| US rank (2010) | 12,370 of 162,253 |
| How often | about 1 in every 122,810 people |
| Change since 2000 | +3.3% (2,434 in 2000) |
| Pronunciation | /bɝk/, 1 syllable |
| Variant spellings | Burgh, Burke, Burgo |

## Etymology

From an Anglo-Norman pronunciation of burgh.

## Who carries it

Share of people named Bourke in the 2010 US Census by the Census's own race and ethnicity groups. The Census suppresses a share when the count behind it is small.

| Group | Share |
|---|---|
| White (not Hispanic) | 90% |
| Black (not Hispanic) | 2.4% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 3.0% |
| Asian and Pacific Islander | 1.2% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 1.9% |
| Two or more races | 1.6% |

## Where

Wikidata records people named Bourke in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and the United States.

## People named Bourke

- Margaret Bourke-White, American photographer (1904-1971)
- Richard Bourke, 6th Earl of Mayo, British Conservative statesman and 4th Viceroy of India (1822–1872)
- Richard Bourke, British Army general and colonial administrator

## Similar surnames

Burke, Burk, Bourque, Brake, Brooke, Burkey, Bork, Berke, Bourg, Borek, Burek, Burak.

## How to read these numbers

A Census count is people alive and counted in 2010, not births, and names occurring fewer than 100 times are not published at all. Ethnicity shares are the Census's own categories.