2000
#20,247
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,223
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.45
Rare Last name
Isaak
A surname derived from the biblical name Isaac.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,530 Americans carry the last name Isaak. That puts it at #20,171 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.45 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 224,022 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Isaak 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
1.5K
1 in 224,022
Census rank
#20,171
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,334 bearers of the surname Isaak in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.45 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 20171st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Isaak, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.8%. The next largest groups are Black (9.0%) and Hispanic (5.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Isaak
The surname "ISAAK" originated from the Hebrew name "Yitzchak" meaning "he will laugh" or "he laughs". It is believed to have emerged as an occupational surname for a jester or court entertainer in medieval Europe.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname can be traced back to the 13th century in England and Germany. In the Pipe Rolls of Staffordshire in 1292, a Thomas Ysaac is mentioned as a tax collector. The surname also appears in the Rotuli Hundredorum records of 1274 as "Ysaac".
In Germany, the name was initially spelled as "Isack" or "Issack". It is thought to have originated from the town of Eisenach in Thuringia, which was an important center for Jewish communities during the Middle Ages. The first recorded instance is from a 1286 document from the city of Erfurt, referring to a "Ysaac de Ysenache".
During the 13th and 14th centuries, the surname began to spread across Europe, particularly in areas with significant Jewish populations. Notable bearers of the name include Rabbi Isaac ben Samuel of Acre (1115-1184), a prominent Talmudic scholar from Israel, and Isaac Abravanel (1437-1508), a renowned philosopher and Bible commentator from Portugal.
In England, the surname is also associated with a few notable figures, such as Isaac Barrow (1630-1677), a mathematician and theologian who served as the master of Trinity College, Cambridge, and Sir Isaac Pitman (1813-1897), the inventor of the Pitman shorthand system.
The surname "ISAAK" has also been found in various forms throughout history, including "Isaac", "Isaacs", and "Isacs". It has been borne by several notable individuals, such as Isaac Asimov (1920-1992), the renowned science fiction author, and Isaac Hayes (1942-2008), the influential American singer-songwriter and actor.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Isaak
Among Census respondents with the surname Isaak, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.8%. The next largest groups are Black (9.0%) and Hispanic (5.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Isaak 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 Isaak surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White80.8% · 1,078
- Black or African American9.0% · 120
- Hispanic or Latino5.2% · 69
- Two or more races3.6% · 48
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 12
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 7
Timeline
Historical Census data for Isaak
Isaak 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
#19,296
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,403
+180 bearers (+14.7%)
Per 100,000 0.48
Rank movement Up 951 places
2020
#20,171
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,334
-69 bearers (-4.9%)
Per 100,000 0.45
Rank movement Down 875 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #20,247 | 1,223 | 0.45 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #19,296 | 1,403 | 0.48 | +180 bearers (+14.7%) | Up 951 places |
| 2020 | #20,171 | 1,334 | 0.45 | -69 bearers (-4.9%) | Down 875 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 Isaak 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 | #19,296 | #20,171 | -4.5% |
| Count | 1,403 | 1,334 | -4.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.48 | 0.45 | -7.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Isaak bearers went from 1,403 to 1,334 (-4.9% change). The surname moved down 875 positions in the national ranking, going from #19,296 to #20,171.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Isaak
FAQ
Isaak surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Isaak?
Name Census estimates that about 1,530 living Americans carry the surname Isaak. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 224,022 residents.
How common is Isaak?
Isaak ranks #20,171 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.45 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 1,334 people with the surname Isaak. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,530), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.45 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.45 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 Isaak.
Has Isaak become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Isaak went from 1,403 recorded bearers to 1,334. That is a decrease of 69 (-4.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #19,296 to #20,171.
What does the Census say about the background of Isaak?
Among Census respondents with the surname Isaak, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.8%. The next largest groups are Black (9.0%) and Hispanic (5.2%). 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 Isaak in the 2020 Census, accounting for 80.8% (1,078 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Isaak appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (80.8%), Black (9.0%), Hispanic (5.2%). 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 Isaak (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 Isaak mean?
A surname derived from the biblical name Isaac. 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 Isaak (0.45 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 Isaak?
For a quick modern take, check how many people have the surname Isaak on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.