2000
#114,852
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 141
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Cwiakala
A surname of Polish origin denoting a person from the village of Cwiakala.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 138 Americans carry the last name Cwiakala. That puts it at #142,049 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,483,727 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Cwiakala 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
138
1 in 2,483,727
Census rank
#142,049
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
120
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 120 bearers of the surname Cwiakala in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 142049th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Cwiakala, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Cwiakala
The surname CWIAKALA is believed to have originated in Poland during the late 15th century. It is thought to be derived from the old Polish word "cwiak," which means a small metal nail or stud. This suggests that the name may have been originally associated with a blacksmith or metalworker trade.
The earliest recorded instances of the CWIAKALA surname can be found in various parish and church records from the regions of Lesser Poland and Silesia. These include a mention of Jan CWIAKALA, born in 1502 in the village of Bieżanów near Kraków, and Marcin CWIAKALA, a blacksmith from Wrocław, who is listed in a 1537 census.
In the 17th century, the name appears in several land ownership documents and legal proceedings. Notable examples include Jakub CWIAKALA, a landowner from Opole who was involved in a property dispute in 1612, and Tomasz CWIAKALA, a merchant from Lwów (now Lviv, Ukraine) who is mentioned in a trade guild record from 1683.
During the 18th and 19th centuries, the CWIAKALA surname began to spread beyond its initial regions, appearing in various parts of modern-day Poland, as well as in areas that were part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth at the time. One notable bearer of the name was Józef CWIAKALA (1765-1842), a Polish soldier who fought in the Kościuszko Uprising against Russian and Prussian forces.
Other individuals of note include Franciszek CWIAKALA (1824-1896), a Polish businessman and philanthropist from Poznań, and Wanda CWIAKALA (1879-1964), a Polish educator and women's rights activist who established several schools for girls in Kraków and Lublin.
While the CWIAKALA name is not among the most common Polish surnames, it has maintained a presence throughout the country's history and can be found in various historical records and documents spanning several centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Cwiakala
Among Census respondents with the surname Cwiakala, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Cwiakala 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 Cwiakala surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.8% · 109
- Hispanic or Latino5.8% · 7
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.7% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.7% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Cwiakala
Cwiakala 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
#124,548
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 138
-3 bearers (-2.1%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Down 9,696 places
2020
#142,049
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 120
-18 bearers (-13.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 17,501 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #114,852 | 141 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #124,548 | 138 | 0.05 | -3 bearers (-2.1%) | Down 9,696 places |
| 2020 | #142,049 | 120 | 0.04 | -18 bearers (-13.0%) | Down 17,501 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 Cwiakala 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 | #124,548 | #142,049 | -14.1% |
| Count | 138 | 120 | -13.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.04 | -19.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Cwiakala bearers went from 138 to 120 (-13.0% change). The surname moved down 17,501 positions in the national ranking, going from #124,548 to #142,049.
FAQ
Cwiakala surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Cwiakala?
Name Census estimates that about 138 living Americans carry the surname Cwiakala. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,483,727 residents.
How common is Cwiakala?
Cwiakala ranks #142,049 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 120 people with the surname Cwiakala. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (138), 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 Cwiakala.
Has Cwiakala become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Cwiakala went from 138 recorded bearers to 120. That is a decrease of 18 (-13.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #124,548 to #142,049.
What does the Census say about the background of Cwiakala?
Among Census respondents with the surname Cwiakala, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (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 Cwiakala in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.8% (109 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Cwiakala appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.8%), Hispanic (5.8%), Asian/Pacific Islander (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 Cwiakala (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 Cwiakala mean?
A surname of Polish origin denoting a person from the village of Cwiakala. 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 Cwiakala (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 are called Cwiakala?
Find out how common the surname Cwiakala is on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.