2000
#99,725
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 168
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.06
Very Rare Last name
Bokan
A surname with possible Slavic origins related to the word "bok" meaning side or flank.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 205 Americans carry the last name Bokan. That puts it at #106,101 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.06 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,671,972 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Bokan 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
205
1 in 1,671,972
Census rank
#106,101
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
179
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 179 bearers of the surname Bokan in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.06 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 106101st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Bokan, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.8%. The next largest groups are Black (8.9%) and Hispanic (5.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Bokan
The surname BOKAN is of Croatian origin, with its earliest records dating back to the 16th century in the Dalmatian region of modern-day Croatia. It is believed to have derived from the Croatian word "boka," which means "bay" or "cove," suggesting that the name's bearers may have lived near a coastal area or a bay.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name BOKAN can be found in the historical archives of the city of Split, Croatia, where a merchant named Ivan Bokan is mentioned in a trade document from 1587. The name also appears in the parish records of the town of Trogir, where a family by the name of Bokan is documented as early as the late 16th century.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the BOKAN name spread throughout other parts of Croatia, as well as neighboring regions such as Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Montenegro. It is likely that some members of the Bokan family migrated to these areas due to economic or political reasons.
Notable individuals with the surname BOKAN include Mate Bokan (1834-1909), a Croatian poet and writer who played a significant role in the Croatian National Revival movement. Another notable figure is Petar Bokan (1898-1975), a Croatian sculptor and academic who taught at the Academy of Fine Arts in Zagreb.
In the 20th century, the name BOKAN gained some prominence in the field of sports. Josip Bokan (1916-1987) was a Croatian football player who represented the Yugoslav national team in the 1930s. More recently, Zoran Bokan (born 1958) is a former Croatian professional basketball player who played for several European clubs and the Yugoslav national team.
While the BOKAN surname is primarily concentrated in Croatia and neighboring regions, it has also been found in other parts of Europe and the world due to migration and historical events. For instance, there are instances of individuals with the surname BOKAN living in countries such as the United States, Canada, and Australia, likely descendants of Croatian immigrants who settled in these countries in the late 19th or early 20th centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Bokan
Among Census respondents with the surname Bokan, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.8%. The next largest groups are Black (8.9%) and Hispanic (5.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Bokan 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 Bokan surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White83.8% · 150
- Black or African American8.9% · 16
- Hispanic or Latino5.0% · 9
- Two or more races1.7% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Bokan
Bokan 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
#96,368
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 189
+21 bearers (+12.5%)
Per 100,000 0.06
Rank movement Up 3,357 places
2020
#106,101
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 179
-10 bearers (-5.3%)
Per 100,000 0.06
Rank movement Down 9,733 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #99,725 | 168 | 0.06 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #96,368 | 189 | 0.06 | +21 bearers (+12.5%) | Up 3,357 places |
| 2020 | #106,101 | 179 | 0.06 | -10 bearers (-5.3%) | Down 9,733 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 Bokan 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 | #96,368 | #106,101 | -10.1% |
| Count | 189 | 179 | -5.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.06 | 0.06 | -0.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Bokan bearers went from 189 to 179 (-5.3% change). The surname moved down 9,733 positions in the national ranking, going from #96,368 to #106,101.
FAQ
Bokan surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Bokan?
Name Census estimates that about 205 living Americans carry the surname Bokan. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,671,972 residents.
How common is Bokan?
Bokan ranks #106,101 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.06 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 179 people with the surname Bokan. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (205), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.06 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.06 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 Bokan.
Has Bokan become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Bokan went from 189 recorded bearers to 179. That is a decrease of 10 (-5.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #96,368 to #106,101.
What does the Census say about the background of Bokan?
Among Census respondents with the surname Bokan, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.8%. The next largest groups are Black (8.9%) and Hispanic (5.0%). 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 Bokan in the 2020 Census, accounting for 83.8% (150 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Bokan appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (83.8%), Black (8.9%), Hispanic (5.0%). 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 Bokan (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 Bokan mean?
A surname with possible Slavic origins related to the word "bok" meaning side or flank. 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 Bokan (0.06 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 common is the surname Bokan?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans have the surname Bokan at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.