2000
#147,095
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 103
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Demsko
A surname of Polish origin derived from a town or village name.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 136 Americans carry the last name Demsko. That puts it at #142,788 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,520,252 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Demsko 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
136
1 in 2,520,252
Census rank
#142,788
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
119
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 119 bearers of the surname Demsko in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 142788th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Demsko, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (10.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Demsko
The surname DEMSKO is believed to have originated in the Slavic regions of Eastern Europe, specifically in areas that are now part of Poland and Ukraine. Its roots can be traced back to the late medieval period, around the 14th or 15th century.
The name DEMSKO is thought to be derived from the Slavic personal name Demyan, which itself comes from the Greek name Damian. This name was relatively common in the region during the Middle Ages and was often used to name children after the early Christian martyr Saint Damian.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name DEMSKO can be found in a Polish church registry from the town of Krakow, dated 1487. The entry refers to a certain Stanislaus Demsko, who was listed as a landowner in the area.
In the 16th century, the DEMSKO name appeared in several land ownership records and tax rolls in the region around the city of Lviv, which was then part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. This suggests that the family had established itself as minor gentry or landowners in that area.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the DEMSKO name continued to be found in various historical records from the Polish and Ukrainian territories. One notable example is Jan Demsko, a Polish military officer who served in the army of King John III Sobieski and participated in the famous Battle of Vienna in 1683.
Another individual of note was Andrzej Demsko, a Polish scholar and theologian who lived from 1628 to 1695. He authored several works on religious philosophy and was a professor at the University of Krakow.
In the 19th century, the DEMSKO surname spread more widely as families migrated to other parts of Europe and beyond. For instance, Mikhail Demsko was a Russian explorer and cartographer who mapped parts of Siberia in the 1820s.
Finally, one of the most famous bearers of the DEMSKO name was Helena Demsko, a Polish artist and painter who lived from 1887 to 1972. She was known for her vibrant landscapes and portraits, and her works are held in several major museums in Poland.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Demsko
Among Census respondents with the surname Demsko, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (10.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Demsko 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 Demsko surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.9% · 101
- Hispanic or Latino10.9% · 13
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.5% · 3
- Black or African American0.8% · 1
- Two or more races0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Demsko
Demsko 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
#142,108
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
+14 bearers (+13.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 4,987 places
2020
#142,788
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 119
+2 bearers (+1.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 680 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #147,095 | 103 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #142,108 | 117 | 0.04 | +14 bearers (+13.6%) | Up 4,987 places |
| 2020 | #142,788 | 119 | 0.04 | +2 bearers (+1.7%) | Down 680 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 Demsko 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 | #142,108 | #142,788 | -0.5% |
| Count | 117 | 119 | 1.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -0.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Demsko bearers went from 117 to 119 (+1.7% change). The surname moved down 680 positions in the national ranking, going from #142,108 to #142,788.
FAQ
Demsko surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Demsko?
Name Census estimates that about 136 living Americans carry the surname Demsko. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,520,252 residents.
How common is Demsko?
Demsko ranks #142,788 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 119 people with the surname Demsko. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (136), 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 Demsko.
Has Demsko become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Demsko went from 117 recorded bearers to 119. That is an increase of 2 (+1.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #142,108 to #142,788.
What does the Census say about the background of Demsko?
Among Census respondents with the surname Demsko, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (10.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.5%). 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 Demsko in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.9% (101 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Demsko appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (84.9%), Hispanic (10.9%), Asian/Pacific Islander (2.5%). 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 Demsko (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 Demsko mean?
A surname of Polish origin derived from a town or village name. 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 Demsko (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 last name Demsko?
If you just want to know how common the surname Demsko is, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.