2000
#8,841
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,409
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.26
Rare Last name
Bukowski
Derived from the Polish place name Bukowsko, referring to a person from or associated with that locality.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,547 Americans carry the last name Bukowski. That puts it at #9,960 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 96,632 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Bukowski 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 Bukowski with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.5K
1 in 96,632
Census rank
#9,960
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,093 bearers of the surname Bukowski in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9960th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Bukowski, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (1.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Bukowski
The surname Bukowski has its origins in Poland, dating back to the 16th century. It is derived from the Polish word "buk," which means "beech tree." The name likely originated from a place name associated with a location that had a significant number of beech trees, such as a village or town surrounded by beech forests.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Bukowski can be found in the Polish town of Krakow, where a family with this surname lived in the late 1500s. Historical records from that time indicate that the Bukowski family owned a small farm on the outskirts of the city, near a dense beech forest.
In the 17th century, the Bukowski name appeared in several manuscripts and documents across various regions of Poland. For instance, a man named Jan Bukowski was mentioned in a legal document from 1642, which detailed a land dispute between him and a neighboring landowner in the village of Strzemieszyce.
The 18th century saw the rise of a prominent Bukowski family in the city of Poznan. This family established themselves as successful merchants and traders, with their name appearing in business records and contracts from that era. One notable member was Stanislaw Bukowski (1710-1783), a wealthy merchant who owned several warehouses and trading ships.
As the Bukowski name spread across Poland, it also emerged in other parts of Europe. In the 19th century, a German branch of the Bukowski family gained recognition, with Johann Bukowski (1821-1897) becoming a respected author and poet in Berlin.
Another famous individual with the Bukowski surname was the American writer and poet Charles Bukowski (1920-1994), who was born in Germany to Polish-American parents. He is renowned for his raw and gritty portrayal of the lives of the urban working class in his poetry and novels.
It's worth noting that the Bukowski name has also been associated with various place names in Poland, such as the village of Bukowiec and the town of Bukowina, both of which likely derived their names from the nearby beech forests.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Bukowski
Among Census respondents with the surname Bukowski, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (1.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Bukowski 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 Bukowski surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.2% · 2,882
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 107
- Two or more races1.7% · 54
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 19
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 18
- Black or African American0.4% · 13
Timeline
Historical Census data for Bukowski
Bukowski 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
#9,338
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,487
+78 bearers (+2.3%)
Per 100,000 1.18
Rank movement Down 497 places
2020
#9,960
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,093
-394 bearers (-11.3%)
Per 100,000 1.03
Rank movement Down 622 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,841 | 3,409 | 1.26 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #9,338 | 3,487 | 1.18 | +78 bearers (+2.3%) | Down 497 places |
| 2020 | #9,960 | 3,093 | 1.03 | -394 bearers (-11.3%) | Down 622 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 Bukowski 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 | #9,338 | #9,960 | -6.7% |
| Count | 3,487 | 3,093 | -11.3% |
| Per 100K | 1.18 | 1.03 | -12.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Bukowski bearers went from 3,487 to 3,093 (-11.3% change). The surname moved down 622 positions in the national ranking, going from #9,338 to #9,960.
FAQ
Bukowski surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Bukowski?
Name Census estimates that about 3,547 living Americans carry the surname Bukowski. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 96,632 residents.
How common is Bukowski?
Bukowski ranks #9,960 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.03 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 3,093 people with the surname Bukowski. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,547), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.03 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 Bukowski.
Has Bukowski become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Bukowski went from 3,487 recorded bearers to 3,093. That is a decrease of 394 (-11.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #9,338 to #9,960.
What does the Census say about the background of Bukowski?
Among Census respondents with the surname Bukowski, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (1.7%). 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 Bukowski in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.2% (2,882 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Bukowski appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.2%), Hispanic (3.5%), Two or More Races (1.7%). 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 Bukowski (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 Bukowski mean?
Derived from the Polish place name Bukowsko, referring to a person from or associated with that locality. 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 Bukowski (1.03 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 people are called Bukowski?
See how many people are called Bukowski on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.