2000
#137,816
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Bercovici
A Romanian surname derived from the Hungarian word "berc" meaning forest.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 119 Americans carry the last name Bercovici. That puts it at #153,590 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,880,289 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Bercovici 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.
Bearers in the US
119
1 in 2,880,289
Census rank
#153,590
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
104
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 104 bearers of the surname Bercovici in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 153590th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Bercovici, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.8%) and Two or More Races (1.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Bercovici
The surname Bercovici is of Romanian origin, originating from the town of Bercovița in Caraș-Severin County, southwestern Romania. The name can be traced back to the 16th century, with various spellings such as Berkovits, Berkovitz, and Berkowitz being used interchangeably.
The name Bercovici is derived from the Romanian word "bercu," meaning "bear," and is believed to have been initially bestowed upon someone who lived near a bear's den or was known for their strength and bravery, akin to a bear. The suffix "-ici" is a common Romanian patronymic, indicating descent from a particular person or family.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Bercovici can be found in the Transylvanian census of 1597, where a family with this surname was documented as residing in the village of Satu Mare. Additionally, the name appears in various church records and land deeds from the 17th and 18th centuries across Romania and neighboring regions.
Notable individuals bearing the surname Bercovici include:
1. Konrad Bercovici (1882-1975), a Romanian-American writer and journalist known for his short stories about life in New York City's immigrant communities.
2. Radu Bercovici (1859-1921), a Romanian military officer and politician who served as the Minister of War and later as the Prime Minister of Romania in the early 20th century.
3. Isidor Bercovici (1844-1913), a Romanian-born Jewish scholar and writer who authored works on Jewish history and literature, and was a prominent figure in the Haskalah (Jewish Enlightenment) movement.
4. Mariano Bercovici (1844-1923), a Romanian-born Italian sculptor known for his works depicting scenes from Italian folklore and mythology, including the sculptural group "The Rape of the Sabine Women" in Rome.
5. Emilia Bercovici (1905-1978), a Romanian painter and illustrator whose works captured the landscapes and daily life of rural Romania in the early 20th century.
The Bercovici surname has also been associated with various place names in Romania, such as the village of Bercovița and the Bercovița River in Caraș-Severin County, as well as the Bercovici Hill in Iași County, further solidifying the name's deep roots in Romanian history and geography.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Bercovici
Among Census respondents with the surname Bercovici, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.8%) and Two or More Races (1.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Bercovici 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 Bercovici surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.3% · 97
- Hispanic or Latino3.8% · 4
- Two or more races1.9% · 2
- Black or African American1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Bercovici
Bercovici 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
#149,395
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
-2 bearers (-1.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 11,579 places
2020
#153,590
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 104
-6 bearers (-5.5%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 4,195 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #137,816 | 112 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #149,395 | 110 | 0.04 | -2 bearers (-1.8%) | Down 11,579 places |
| 2020 | #153,590 | 104 | 0.03 | -6 bearers (-5.5%) | Down 4,195 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 Bercovici 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 | #149,395 | #153,590 | -2.8% |
| Count | 110 | 104 | -5.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -13.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Bercovici bearers went from 110 to 104 (-5.5% change). The surname moved down 4,195 positions in the national ranking, going from #149,395 to #153,590.
FAQ
Bercovici surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Bercovici?
Name Census estimates that about 119 living Americans carry the surname Bercovici. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,880,289 residents.
How common is Bercovici?
Bercovici ranks #153,590 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 104 people with the surname Bercovici. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (119), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Bercovici.
Has Bercovici become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Bercovici went from 110 recorded bearers to 104. That is a decrease of 6 (-5.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #149,395 to #153,590.
What does the Census say about the background of Bercovici?
Among Census respondents with the surname Bercovici, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.8%) and Two or More Races (1.9%). 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 Bercovici in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.3% (97 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Bercovici appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.3%), Hispanic (3.8%), Two or More Races (1.9%). 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 Bercovici (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 Bercovici mean?
A Romanian surname derived from the Hungarian word "berc" meaning forest. 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 Bercovici (0.03 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 Americans have the surname Bercovici?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.