2000
#5,667
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,618
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.08
Rare Last name
Hudak
A surname of Slovak origin, derived from the word "hudák," meaning "fiddler" or "violinist."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,961 Americans carry the last name Hudak. That puts it at #6,297 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.74 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 57,499 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hudak 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
6.0K
1 in 57,499
Census rank
#6,297
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,198 bearers of the surname Hudak in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.74 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6297th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hudak, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Two or More Races (2.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hudak
The surname Hudak has its origins in Slovakia, dating back to the 15th century. It is derived from the Old Slovak word "hudat," which means "to play music" or "to make noise." This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone who was a musician or entertainer.
Hudak is a variant spelling of the more common Slovak surname Hudec. Some of the earliest known references to this name can be found in village records and church registries from the Presov and Kosice regions of eastern Slovakia.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Hudak surname appears in a 16th-century document from the town of Bardejov, which mentions a man named Michal Hudak. Another notable early bearer of this name was Jan Hudak, a prominent merchant and landowner from the village of Velka Lomnica, who lived in the late 17th century.
The Hudak surname has also been found in various historical records from other parts of Central Europe, including Poland, Hungary, and Croatia. This is likely due to migration patterns and the movement of people across borders in this region throughout history.
Some notable individuals with the surname Hudak include:
1. Mikulas Hudak (1770-1848), a Slovak poet and playwright from the village of Cachtice.
2. Jan Hudak (1857-1932), a Czech-born American sculptor known for his work on the Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument in Indianapolis.
3. Geza Hudak (1888-1958), a Hungarian-born American painter and illustrator who worked for major publications such as The Saturday Evening Post.
4. Jaroslav Hudak (1909-1976), a Slovak actor and director who appeared in numerous films and theater productions.
5. Milos Hudak (1932-2022), a Slovak ice hockey player and coach who represented Czechoslovakia in the 1960 and 1964 Winter Olympics.
While the Hudak surname is most commonly associated with Slovakia and the surrounding regions, it has spread to various parts of the world due to migration and diaspora communities.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hudak
Among Census respondents with the surname Hudak, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Two or More Races (2.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Hudak 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 Hudak surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.0% · 4,885
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 128
- Two or more races2.3% · 120
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 25
- Black or African American0.4% · 22
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 18
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hudak
Hudak 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
#6,124
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,593
-25 bearers (-0.4%)
Per 100,000 1.90
Rank movement Down 457 places
2020
#6,297
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,198
-395 bearers (-7.1%)
Per 100,000 1.74
Rank movement Down 173 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,667 | 5,618 | 2.08 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,124 | 5,593 | 1.90 | -25 bearers (-0.4%) | Down 457 places |
| 2020 | #6,297 | 5,198 | 1.74 | -395 bearers (-7.1%) | Down 173 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 Hudak 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 | #6,124 | #6,297 | -2.8% |
| Count | 5,593 | 5,198 | -7.1% |
| Per 100K | 1.90 | 1.74 | -8.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hudak bearers went from 5,593 to 5,198 (-7.1% change). The surname moved down 173 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,124 to #6,297.
FAQ
Hudak surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hudak?
Name Census estimates that about 5,961 living Americans carry the surname Hudak. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 57,499 residents.
How common is Hudak?
Hudak ranks #6,297 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.74 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,198 people with the surname Hudak. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,961), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.74 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.74 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Hudak.
Has Hudak become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hudak went from 5,593 recorded bearers to 5,198. That is a decrease of 395 (-7.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #6,124 to #6,297.
What does the Census say about the background of Hudak?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hudak, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Hudak in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.0% (4,885 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hudak appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.0%), Hispanic (2.5%), Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Hudak (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 Hudak mean?
A surname of Slovak origin, derived from the word "hudák," meaning "fiddler" or "violinist." 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 Hudak (1.74 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 common is the surname Hudak?
You can see how many people have the surname Hudak on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.