2000
#123,314
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 129
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Bielek
A Polish surname derived from the word "biely" meaning white or blonde.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 134 Americans carry the last name Bielek. That puts it at #144,270 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,557,868 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Bielek 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
134
1 in 2,557,868
Census rank
#144,270
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
117
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 117 bearers of the surname Bielek in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 144270th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Bielek, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Bielek
The surname Bielek is of Polish origin, with its roots tracing back to the 11th century. It is derived from the Polish word "biały," which means "white," and was likely a descriptive name given to someone with fair hair or a pale complexion.
The earliest recorded instances of the Bielek surname can be found in medieval Polish records and documents, including the Codex Diplomaticus Regni Poloniae, a collection of historical documents from the Polish Kingdom. One notable mention is in a land grant from 1287, where a certain "Jacobus Bielek" is listed as a landowner in the region of Silesia.
In the 15th century, the Bielek name appeared in the Akta Grodzkie i Ziemskie, a collection of court records and land deeds from the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. This includes references to a family of nobles from the Bielek line who held land and titles in the Poznań region.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the surname Bielek started to spread across Poland and into neighboring regions, such as Galicia and Silesia. Some notable bearers of the name during this period include Jan Bielek (1540-1612), a prominent merchant and landowner in Kraków, and Katarzyna Bielek (1605-1672), a noblewoman who was a patron of the arts and supported the construction of several churches in the Lublin area.
In the 18th century, the Bielek surname gained recognition through the work of Andrzej Bielek (1718-1799), a renowned Polish historian and writer who authored several influential works on the history of Poland and the Polish language.
Another notable figure was Franciszek Bielek (1832-1910), a Polish military officer who fought in the January Uprising against Russian rule in the 1860s. He later emigrated to the United States and settled in Chicago, where he became active in the Polish-American community.
Over the centuries, variations of the Bielek surname have emerged, such as Bielecki, Bielak, and Bielski, but the core meaning and origin have remained consistent. While the name is predominantly found in Poland, it has also spread to other parts of Europe and the world through immigration and diaspora communities.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Bielek
Among Census respondents with the surname Bielek, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Bielek 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 Bielek surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.3% · 108
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 4
- Two or more races2.6% · 3
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Bielek
Bielek 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
#131,379
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 129
+0 bearers (+0.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 8,065 places
2020
#144,270
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
-12 bearers (-9.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 12,891 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #123,314 | 129 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #131,379 | 129 | 0.04 | +0 bearers (+0.0%) | Down 8,065 places |
| 2020 | #144,270 | 117 | 0.04 | -12 bearers (-9.3%) | Down 12,891 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 Bielek 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 | #131,379 | #144,270 | -9.8% |
| Count | 129 | 117 | -9.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -2.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Bielek bearers went from 129 to 117 (-9.3% change). The surname moved down 12,891 positions in the national ranking, going from #131,379 to #144,270.
FAQ
Bielek surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Bielek?
Name Census estimates that about 134 living Americans carry the surname Bielek. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,557,868 residents.
How common is Bielek?
Bielek ranks #144,270 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 117 people with the surname Bielek. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (134), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Bielek.
Has Bielek become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Bielek went from 129 recorded bearers to 117. That is a decrease of 12 (-9.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #131,379 to #144,270.
What does the Census say about the background of Bielek?
Among Census respondents with the surname Bielek, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (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 Bielek in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.3% (108 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Bielek appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.3%), Hispanic (3.4%), Two or More Races (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 Bielek (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 Bielek mean?
A Polish surname derived from the word "biely" meaning white or blonde. 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 Bielek (0.04 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 share the surname Bielek?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.