2010
#153,769
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 106
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Ciemny
A Polish surname meaning "dark" or "gloomy".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 118 Americans carry the last name Ciemny. That puts it at #154,182 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,904,698 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Ciemny 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
118
1 in 2,904,698
Census rank
#154,182
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
103
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 103 bearers of the surname Ciemny in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 154182nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Ciemny, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Ciemny
The surname CIEMNY originates from Poland and is derived from the Polish word "ciemny," which means "dark" or "gloomy." This name likely originated in the Middle Ages, perhaps as a descriptive nickname given to someone with a dark complexion or a somber demeanor.
The earliest recorded instances of the name CIEMNY can be traced back to the 15th century in various Polish records and manuscripts. One notable mention is in the Metryka Koronna, a collection of official documents from the Polish Crown, where a certain Jan Ciemny is listed as a landowner in the region of Lesser Poland.
In the 16th century, the name appears in the Teki Naruszewicza, a compilation of historical sources compiled by Adam Naruszewicz, where a Tomasz Ciemny is mentioned as a merchant in the city of Krakow. Around the same time, the variant spelling "Ciemni" is found in the Akta Grodzkie, a collection of court records from various Polish towns and cities.
The CIEMNY name has also been associated with several notable individuals throughout history. One of the earliest was Jakub Ciemny (c. 1480-1540), a Polish Catholic priest and theologian who served as a professor at the Jagiellonian University in Krakow.
Another prominent figure was Katarzyna Ciemny (1534-1598), a noblewoman and landowner in the region of Greater Poland. She was known for her involvement in local politics and her patronage of the arts.
In the 17th century, Michał Ciemny (1620-1687) was a Polish military officer who fought in the Swedish Invasion of Poland during the Northern Wars. He gained recognition for his bravery and leadership in several battles against the Swedish forces.
Moving into the 18th century, Józef Ciemny (1742-1811) was a Polish writer and poet who is best known for his satirical works critiquing the nobility and the social conditions of the time.
Finally, in the 19th century, Teodor Ciemny (1856-1923) was a Polish artist and painter who specialized in landscape and portrait paintings. He is particularly known for his depictions of the Polish countryside and rural life.
While the CIEMNY surname is not among the most common in Poland, it has a rich history and has been borne by numerous individuals who have left their mark in various fields, from religion and literature to the military and the arts.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ciemny
Among Census respondents with the surname Ciemny, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Ciemny 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 Ciemny surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White96.1% · 99
- Two or more races2.9% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Ciemny
Ciemny 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
#154,182
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 103
-3 bearers (-2.8%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 413 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #153,769 | 106 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #154,182 | 103 | 0.03 | -3 bearers (-2.8%) | Down 413 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 Ciemny 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 | #153,769 | #154,182 | -0.3% |
| Count | 106 | 103 | -2.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -13.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Ciemny bearers went from 106 to 103 (-2.8% change). The surname moved down 413 positions in the national ranking, going from #153,769 to #154,182.
FAQ
Ciemny surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Ciemny?
Name Census estimates that about 118 living Americans carry the surname Ciemny. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,904,698 residents.
How common is Ciemny?
Ciemny ranks #154,182 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 103 people with the surname Ciemny. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (118), 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 Ciemny.
Has Ciemny become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Ciemny went from 106 recorded bearers to 103. That is a decrease of 3 (-2.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #153,769 to #154,182.
What does the Census say about the background of Ciemny?
Among Census respondents with the surname Ciemny, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.0%). 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 Ciemny in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.1% (99 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Ciemny appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (96.1%), Two or More Races (2.9%), Asian/Pacific Islander (1.0%). 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 Ciemny (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 Ciemny mean?
A Polish surname meaning "dark" or "gloomy". 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 Ciemny (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 Ciemny?
If you just want to know how common the surname Ciemny is, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.