2000
#138,741
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Cernansky
An ethnicity name of Czech origin for someone from the village of Cerná.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 126 Americans carry the last name Cernansky. That puts it at #149,446 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,720,273 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Cernansky 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
126
1 in 2,720,273
Census rank
#149,446
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
110
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 110 bearers of the surname Cernansky in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 149446th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Cernansky, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.6%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (2.7%) and Hispanic (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Cernansky
The surname Cernansky originates from Slovakia, a country in Central Europe. It likely emerged in the 12th or 13th century, derived from the Slovak word "cerny," meaning black or dark. The suffix "-sky" indicates a regional or locational origin, suggesting the name may have referred to someone from a place with a dark or black feature, such as a forest or a river.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Cernansky can be found in the Bratislava City Archives, dating back to the 16th century. A document from 1562 mentions a certain Matej Cernansky, a landowner in the village of Cerná Voda (literally "Black Water"), near the town of Trnava.
The Cernansky name appears to have been most prevalent in the western regions of Slovakia, particularly in the areas around Trnava and Bratislava. This could be due to the influence of the nearby Black Forest (Cerny les) or the Black River (Cerny potok) that flows through these regions.
In the 17th century, a notable figure bearing the Cernansky surname was Ján Cernansky (1628-1697), a Jesuit priest and author who wrote several religious texts and sermons in the Slovak language. His works played a significant role in the development of Slovak literature during the Counter-Reformation period.
Another prominent individual with this surname was Juraj Cernansky (1759-1835), a Slovak playwright and dramatist. He is renowned for his contributions to the Slovak National Revival movement, which aimed to revive and promote the Slovak language and culture.
In the 19th century, Michal Cernansky (1812-1879) was a Slovak lawyer and politician who served as a member of the Hungarian Parliament. He advocated for the rights of Slovaks and the recognition of the Slovak language in the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
One of the most notable figures bearing the Cernansky surname in recent history was Vladimír Cernansky (1919-2002), a Slovak film director and screenwriter. He directed several acclaimed movies, including "The Sunny Side of the Street" (1959) and "The Boxer and Death" (1963), which explored social and political themes in communist Czechoslovakia.
Throughout its history, the Cernansky surname has maintained its roots in Slovakia, with various branches and spellings emerging in neighboring countries like Czech Republic, Poland, and Hungary due to migration and intermarriage.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Cernansky
Among Census respondents with the surname Cernansky, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.6%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (2.7%) and Hispanic (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Cernansky 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 Cernansky surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.6% · 103
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.7% · 3
- Hispanic or Latino1.8% · 2
- Two or more races1.8% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Cernansky
Cernansky 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
#136,449
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 123
+12 bearers (+10.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 2,292 places
2020
#149,446
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
-13 bearers (-10.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 12,997 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #138,741 | 111 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #136,449 | 123 | 0.04 | +12 bearers (+10.8%) | Up 2,292 places |
| 2020 | #149,446 | 110 | 0.04 | -13 bearers (-10.6%) | Down 12,997 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 Cernansky 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 | #136,449 | #149,446 | -9.5% |
| Count | 123 | 110 | -10.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -8.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Cernansky bearers went from 123 to 110 (-10.6% change). The surname moved down 12,997 positions in the national ranking, going from #136,449 to #149,446.
FAQ
Cernansky surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Cernansky?
Name Census estimates that about 126 living Americans carry the surname Cernansky. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,720,273 residents.
How common is Cernansky?
Cernansky ranks #149,446 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 110 people with the surname Cernansky. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (126), 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 Cernansky.
Has Cernansky become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Cernansky went from 123 recorded bearers to 110. That is a decrease of 13 (-10.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #136,449 to #149,446.
What does the Census say about the background of Cernansky?
Among Census respondents with the surname Cernansky, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.6%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (2.7%) and Hispanic (1.8%). 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 Cernansky in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.6% (103 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Cernansky appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.6%), Asian/Pacific Islander (2.7%), Hispanic (1.8%). 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 Cernansky (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 Cernansky mean?
An ethnicity name of Czech origin for someone from the village of Cerná. 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 Cernansky (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 have the surname Cernansky?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.