2000
#136,783
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Halecki
An occupational Polish surname derived from "halka," meaning one who worked with or made halkas (a type of cloak or coat).
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 127 Americans carry the last name Halecki. That puts it at #148,665 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,698,853 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Halecki 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
127
1 in 2,698,853
Census rank
#148,665
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
111
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 111 bearers of the surname Halecki in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 148665th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Halecki, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.5%) and Hispanic (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Halecki
The surname Halecki is of Polish origin, derived from the word "halka," which means "little hill" or "mound." It is believed to have originated in the 16th century and was initially found in the central and southern regions of Poland.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Halecki can be traced back to the 16th century, when it appeared in historical documents from the town of Krakow. The name was often associated with families living in rural areas or small villages near hills or elevated terrain.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the Halecki surname began to spread across various parts of Poland, as families migrated and settled in new regions. Some notable individuals bearing this name from this period include Jan Halecki (1624-1688), a prominent merchant from Warsaw, and Jakub Halecki (1712-1784), a respected landowner and farmer from the Łódź region.
In the 19th century, the Halecki name gained further recognition with the birth of Oskar Halecki (1891-1973), a renowned Polish historian and professor who specialized in the history of Eastern Europe. He authored several influential works, including "A History of Poland" and "The Millennium of Europe."
Another notable figure with the Halecki surname was Tadeusz Halecki (1846-1912), a Polish painter and artist known for his landscapes and portraits. His works were widely exhibited in various galleries and museums across Europe during his lifetime.
Throughout the 20th century, the Halecki name continued to be present in various fields, including academia, arts, and literature. One such figure was Jerzy Halecki (1920-1998), a Polish writer and journalist who chronicled the experiences of Polish immigrants in the United States.
While the surname Halecki originated in Poland, it has since spread to other parts of the world due to immigration and cultural exchange. However, its roots can be traced back to the small hills and mounds of central and southern Poland, where it first emerged as a family name several centuries ago.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Halecki
Among Census respondents with the surname Halecki, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.5%) and Hispanic (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Halecki 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 Halecki surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.7% · 104
- Two or more races4.5% · 5
- Hispanic or Latino0.9% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Halecki
Halecki 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
#145,220
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
+1 bearers (+0.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 8,437 places
2020
#148,665
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
-3 bearers (-2.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 3,445 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #136,783 | 113 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #145,220 | 114 | 0.04 | +1 bearers (+0.9%) | Down 8,437 places |
| 2020 | #148,665 | 111 | 0.04 | -3 bearers (-2.6%) | Down 3,445 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 Halecki 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 | #145,220 | #148,665 | -2.4% |
| Count | 114 | 111 | -2.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -7.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Halecki bearers went from 114 to 111 (-2.6% change). The surname moved down 3,445 positions in the national ranking, going from #145,220 to #148,665.
FAQ
Halecki surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Halecki?
Name Census estimates that about 127 living Americans carry the surname Halecki. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,698,853 residents.
How common is Halecki?
Halecki ranks #148,665 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 111 people with the surname Halecki. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (127), 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 Halecki.
Has Halecki become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Halecki went from 114 recorded bearers to 111. That is a decrease of 3 (-2.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #145,220 to #148,665.
What does the Census say about the background of Halecki?
Among Census respondents with the surname Halecki, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.5%) and Hispanic (0.9%). 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 Halecki in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.7% (104 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Halecki appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.7%), Two or More Races (4.5%), Hispanic (0.9%). 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 Halecki (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 Halecki mean?
An occupational Polish surname derived from "halka," meaning one who worked with or made halkas (a type of cloak or coat). 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 Halecki (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 Halecki?
Want to know how many people are called Halecki? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.