2010
#147,253
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Byrtus
An uncommon surname of uncertain origin, possibly derived from a nickname for a short person.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 119 Americans carry the last name Byrtus. 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 Byrtus 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 Byrtus 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 Byrtus, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.7%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Byrtus
The surname BYRTUS is of Polish origin, stemming from the medieval era. It is believed to have originated in the regions of Silesia and Lesser Poland, where it was commonly found among families residing in rural areas.
The name BYRTUS is thought to be derived from the Old Polish word "byrta," which referred to a type of leather satchel or pouch used for carrying goods. This suggests that the earliest bearers of this surname may have been craftsmen or merchants involved in the production or trade of such leather goods.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the BYRTUS surname can be found in the Księgi Miejskie (Town Books) of Kraków, dating back to the late 15th century. These records document a certain Jan BYRTUS, a leatherworker who lived and worked in the city during that period.
In the 16th century, the BYRTUS name appeared in various parish records and tax registers across Silesia and Lesser Poland. Notable examples include Maciej BYRTUS, a landowner from the village of Rybnik, whose name is mentioned in a land deed from 1532, and Jakub BYRTUS, a farmer from the town of Opole, recorded in a tax register from 1578.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the BYRTUS surname spread beyond its traditional heartlands as families migrated to other parts of Poland and neighboring regions. One prominent figure from this era was Stanisław BYRTUS (1643-1718), a renowned scholar and philosopher who served as a professor at the Jagiellonian University in Kraków.
In the 19th century, the BYRTUS name was carried by several notable individuals, including Andrzej BYRTUS (1812-1887), a Polish writer and poet, and Franciszek BYRTUS (1847-1913), a prominent lawyer and politician who served as a member of the Galician Sejm (regional parliament).
Other individuals of historical significance bearing the BYRTUS surname include Czesław BYRTUS (1901-1981), a celebrated Polish sculptor and artist, and Eugeniusz BYRTUS (1914-1997), a military officer who fought in the Warsaw Uprising against Nazi German occupation during World War II.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Byrtus
Among Census respondents with the surname Byrtus, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.7%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Byrtus 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 Byrtus surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.5% · 91
- Hispanic or Latino7.7% · 8
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.9% · 2
- Two or more races1.9% · 2
- Black or African American1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Byrtus
Byrtus appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#153,590
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 104
-8 bearers (-7.1%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 6,337 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #147,253 | 112 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #153,590 | 104 | 0.03 | -8 bearers (-7.1%) | Down 6,337 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 Byrtus 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 | #147,253 | #153,590 | -4.3% |
| Count | 112 | 104 | -7.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -13.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Byrtus bearers went from 112 to 104 (-7.1% change). The surname moved down 6,337 positions in the national ranking, going from #147,253 to #153,590.
FAQ
Byrtus surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Byrtus?
Name Census estimates that about 119 living Americans carry the surname Byrtus. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,880,289 residents.
How common is Byrtus?
Byrtus 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 Byrtus. 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 Byrtus.
Has Byrtus become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Byrtus went from 112 recorded bearers to 104. That is a decrease of 8 (-7.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #147,253 to #153,590.
What does the Census say about the background of Byrtus?
Among Census respondents with the surname Byrtus, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.7%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (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 Byrtus in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.5% (91 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Byrtus appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.5%), Hispanic (7.7%), American Indian/Alaska Native (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 Byrtus (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 Byrtus mean?
An uncommon surname of uncertain origin, possibly derived from a nickname for a short person. 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 Byrtus (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 common is the surname Byrtus?
Want to know how many people have the surname Byrtus? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.