2000
#11,040
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,642
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.98
Rare Last name
Bak
A short form of various surnames beginning with "Bak-," likely indicating an ancestor who worked as a baker.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,330 Americans carry the last name Bak. That puts it at #10,534 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.97 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 102,929 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Bak surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Bak with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.3K
1 in 102,929
Census rank
#10,534
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,904 bearers of the surname Bak in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.97 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10534th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Bak, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.7%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (20.8%) and Black (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Bak
The surname Bak has its origins in the Netherlands, where it first appeared in the early 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the Middle Dutch word "bak," which meant "basin" or "trough." This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone who lived near a basin or worked with basins or troughs.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Dutch town of Leiden in 1538, where a man named Adriaen Bak was listed in a legal document. Another early reference is from the town of Delft in 1575, where a Jacob Bak is mentioned in a church record.
In the 17th century, the name spread to other parts of the Netherlands and neighboring regions. For example, in 1642, a Jan Bak was born in the town of Zutphen, near the border with Germany. Around the same time, the name also began appearing in German records, likely due to migration or trade between the two countries.
One notable bearer of the name was Gerard Bak, a Dutch painter who lived from 1628 to 1701. He is best known for his portraits and still-life paintings, which were popular among the wealthy merchants of Amsterdam.
Another historical figure with the surname Bak was Johannes Bak, a Dutch theologian and philosopher who lived from 1593 to 1650. He was a prominent figure in the Remonstrant Brotherhood, a religious movement that arose in the Netherlands during the Protestant Reformation.
In the 18th century, the name Bak continued to be found throughout the Netherlands and neighboring regions. For instance, in 1765, a Pieter Bak was born in the town of Vlaardingen, near Rotterdam.
By the 19th century, the name had also made its way to other parts of Europe and the world, likely due to emigration from the Netherlands. One example is Søren Aagaard Bak, a Danish architect who lived from 1844 to 1908 and was responsible for designing several notable buildings in Copenhagen.
Another notable figure with the surname Bak was the Russian-born composer Mikhail Bak, who lived from 1901 to 1972. He was known for his works for piano and orchestra, as well as his contributions to film scores.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Bak
Among Census respondents with the surname Bak, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.7%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (20.8%) and Black (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Bak bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Bak surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White72.7% · 2,111
- Asian and Pacific Islander20.8% · 603
- Black or African American2.6% · 75
- Hispanic or Latino2.1% · 60
- Two or more races1.9% · 55
Timeline
Historical Census data for Bak
Bak appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#10,903
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,920
+278 bearers (+10.5%)
Per 100,000 0.99
Rank movement Up 137 places
2020
#10,534
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,904
-16 bearers (-0.5%)
Per 100,000 0.97
Rank movement Up 369 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,040 | 2,642 | 0.98 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,903 | 2,920 | 0.99 | +278 bearers (+10.5%) | Up 137 places |
| 2020 | #10,534 | 2,904 | 0.97 | -16 bearers (-0.5%) | Up 369 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Bak surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #10,903 | #10,534 | 3.4% |
| Count | 2,920 | 2,904 | -0.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.99 | 0.97 | -1.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Bak bearers went from 2,920 to 2,904 (-0.5% change). The surname moved up 369 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,903 to #10,534.
FAQ
Bak surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Bak?
Name Census estimates that about 3,330 living Americans carry the surname Bak. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 102,929 residents.
How common is Bak?
Bak ranks #10,534 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.97 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,904 people with the surname Bak. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,330), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.97 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.97 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Bak.
Has Bak become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Bak went from 2,920 recorded bearers to 2,904. That is a decrease of 16 (-0.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #10,903 to #10,534.
What does the Census say about the background of Bak?
Among Census respondents with the surname Bak, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.7%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (20.8%) and Black (2.6%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Bak in the 2020 Census, accounting for 72.7% (2,111 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Bak appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (72.7%), Asian/Pacific Islander (20.8%), Black (2.6%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Bak (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Bak mean?
A short form of various surnames beginning with "Bak-," likely indicating an ancestor who worked as a baker. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Bak (0.97 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people have the surname Bak?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.