2010
#156,044
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 104
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Gralnick
An anglicized form of the Polish surname Grenlik, referring to a maker of coarse woolen cloth.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 117 Americans carry the last name Gralnick. That puts it at #154,755 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,929,524 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Gralnick 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
117
1 in 2,929,524
Census rank
#154,755
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
102
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 102 bearers of the surname Gralnick in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 154755th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Gralnick, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Black (2.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Gralnick
The surname GRALNICK has its origins in the Slavic regions of Eastern Europe, particularly in areas that are now part of modern-day Poland and Ukraine. The name likely emerged during the late Middle Ages, around the 14th or 15th century.
One theory suggests that the name GRALNICK is derived from the Slavic word "gralnik," which translates to "one who plays a horn or trumpet." This could indicate that early bearers of the name were musicians, perhaps employed by noblemen or in military bands.
Another possibility is that the name is a variant of the more common Slavic surname "Graliński," which is believed to have originated from a place name referring to a village or town where the first bearers of the name resided. The suffix "-nik" in GRALNICK may have been added later to denote someone from that particular location.
Early records of the name GRALNICK are scarce, but some historians have found references to individuals with similar spellings, such as "Gralnik" or "Gralnitski," in historical documents and parish registers from the 16th and 17th centuries in regions that were part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.
One notable figure with the GRALNICK surname was Tomasz Gralnicki (1617-1693), a Polish noble and military commander who fought in the Polish-Swedish wars of the mid-17th century. He was known for his bravery and leadership during several battles against Swedish forces.
Another individual of note was Katarzyna Gralnick (1734-1801), a Polish landowner and philanthropist who established several schools and hospitals in her region. Her charitable efforts were widely recognized during her lifetime.
In the 19th century, a Russian aristocrat named Andrei Gralnick (1825-1891) gained prominence as a patron of the arts and a collector of rare books and manuscripts. His personal library was considered one of the finest in Imperial Russia.
A more recent figure was Wladyslaw Gralnick (1895-1976), a Polish-American engineer and inventor who held several patents for innovative mechanical devices. He immigrated to the United States in the 1920s and worked for various manufacturing companies in the Midwest.
The name GRALNICK has also been found in historical records from other Slavic countries, such as Belarus and Ukraine, indicating that the name may have spread beyond its Polish origins. However, the precise migration patterns and distribution of the name across Eastern Europe remain somewhat uncertain due to the scarcity of early documented evidence.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gralnick
Among Census respondents with the surname Gralnick, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Black (2.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Gralnick 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 Gralnick surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.1% · 96
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 3
- Black or African American2.0% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Gralnick
Gralnick 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
#154,755
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
-2 bearers (-1.9%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Up 1,289 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #156,044 | 104 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #154,755 | 102 | 0.03 | -2 bearers (-1.9%) | Up 1,289 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 Gralnick 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 | #156,044 | #154,755 | 0.8% |
| Count | 104 | 102 | -1.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -14.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Gralnick bearers went from 104 to 102 (-1.9% change). The surname moved up 1,289 positions in the national ranking, going from #156,044 to #154,755.
FAQ
Gralnick surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Gralnick?
Name Census estimates that about 117 living Americans carry the surname Gralnick. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,929,524 residents.
How common is Gralnick?
Gralnick ranks #154,755 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 102 people with the surname Gralnick. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (117), 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 Gralnick.
Has Gralnick become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Gralnick went from 104 recorded bearers to 102. That is a decrease of 2 (-1.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #156,044 to #154,755.
What does the Census say about the background of Gralnick?
Among Census respondents with the surname Gralnick, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Black (2.0%). 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 Gralnick in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.1% (96 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Gralnick appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.1%), Hispanic (2.9%), Black (2.0%). 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 Gralnick (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 Gralnick mean?
An anglicized form of the Polish surname Grenlik, referring to a maker of coarse woolen cloth. 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 Gralnick (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 many people have the last name Gralnick?
You can see how many people have the surname Gralnick on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.