2000
#10,696
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,741
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.02
Rare Last name
Fiala
A Czech and Slovak occupational surname referring to a violinist or violin maker.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,113 Americans carry the last name Fiala. That puts it at #11,156 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.91 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 110,104 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Fiala 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
3.1K
1 in 110,104
Census rank
#11,156
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,715 bearers of the surname Fiala in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.91 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11156th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Fiala, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.2%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Fiala
The surname Fiala originated in the Czech Republic and is derived from the Czech word "fiala," which means "violet." It is believed that the name was initially given as a nickname or descriptive name to someone who had a fondness for violets or perhaps had violet-colored eyes.
The earliest recorded instances of the Fiala surname can be traced back to the 14th century in various regions of what is now the Czech Republic, particularly in Bohemia and Moravia. Some of the oldest known records containing the name include parish registers, tax records, and land deeds from that period.
One of the earliest known bearers of the Fiala surname was Jan Fiala, a prominent Czech nobleman who lived during the 15th century. He was known for his involvement in the Hussite Wars, a series of religious conflicts that took place in Bohemia during the early part of the 15th century.
Another notable figure with the Fiala surname was Vaclav Fiala, a Czech composer and organist who lived from 1749 to 1816. He is best known for his contributions to the development of Czech classical music during the late 18th and early 19th centuries.
In the 19th century, the Fiala surname gained wider recognition with the birth of Frantisek Fiala, a renowned Czech painter and illustrator. He was born in 1865 and is celebrated for his depictions of Czech landscapes and traditional folk scenes.
The surname Fiala also has connections to the Czech diaspora, as many Czechs emigrated to other parts of the world, particularly the United States, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. One prominent example is Antonin Fiala, a Czech-American explorer and adventurer who led several expeditions to the Arctic regions in the early 20th century. He was born in 1865 and died in 1936.
Another notable Fiala was Vlastimil Fiala, a Czech-American painter and sculptor who lived from 1891 to 1977. He was known for his realistic portrayal of Native American subjects and for his contributions to the art scene in the American Southwest.
While the Fiala surname is most commonly associated with its Czech origins, it has also been adopted by families in other parts of Europe, particularly in neighboring countries like Slovakia, Austria, and Germany, where it may have slightly different spellings or variations.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Fiala
Among Census respondents with the surname Fiala, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.2%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Fiala 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 Fiala surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.3% · 2,478
- Hispanic or Latino4.2% · 113
- Two or more races2.8% · 76
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 25
- Black or African American0.7% · 18
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Fiala
Fiala 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
#11,109
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,856
+115 bearers (+4.2%)
Per 100,000 0.97
Rank movement Down 413 places
2020
#11,156
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,715
-141 bearers (-4.9%)
Per 100,000 0.91
Rank movement Down 47 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,696 | 2,741 | 1.02 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,109 | 2,856 | 0.97 | +115 bearers (+4.2%) | Down 413 places |
| 2020 | #11,156 | 2,715 | 0.91 | -141 bearers (-4.9%) | Down 47 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 Fiala 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 | #11,109 | #11,156 | -0.4% |
| Count | 2,856 | 2,715 | -4.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.97 | 0.91 | -6.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Fiala bearers went from 2,856 to 2,715 (-4.9% change). The surname moved down 47 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,109 to #11,156.
FAQ
Fiala surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Fiala?
Name Census estimates that about 3,113 living Americans carry the surname Fiala. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 110,104 residents.
How common is Fiala?
Fiala ranks #11,156 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.91 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,715 people with the surname Fiala. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,113), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.91 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.91 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Fiala.
Has Fiala become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Fiala went from 2,856 recorded bearers to 2,715. That is a decrease of 141 (-4.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #11,109 to #11,156.
What does the Census say about the background of Fiala?
Among Census respondents with the surname Fiala, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.2%) and Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Fiala in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.3% (2,478 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Fiala appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.3%), Hispanic (4.2%), Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Fiala (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 Fiala mean?
A Czech and Slovak occupational surname referring to a violinist or violin maker. 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 Fiala (0.91 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 Fiala?
For a quick modern take, check how many people have the surname Fiala on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.