2000
#134,037
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 116
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Karolczak
A Polish surname derived from a diminutive form of the given name Karol.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 122 Americans carry the last name Karolczak. That puts it at #152,339 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,809,462 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Karolczak 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
122
1 in 2,809,462
Census rank
#152,339
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
106
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 106 bearers of the surname Karolczak in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 152339th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Karolczak, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.2%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (1.9%) and Black (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Karolczak
The surname Karolczak originated in Poland in the late 15th century. It is derived from the Polish given name Karol, which is the Slavic form of Charles. The suffix "-czak" was commonly added to Polish surnames to indicate a diminutive or patronymic form, suggesting that the name originally referred to the son or descendant of someone named Karol.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Karolczak surname can be found in the Akta Metrykalne, a collection of genealogical records from the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth dating back to the 16th century. The name appears to have been concentrated in the regions of Wielkopolska and Mazowsze, though it later spread throughout Poland and beyond.
In the 17th century, a notable bearer of the Karolczak name was Jan Karolczak, a Polish military commander who fought in the Smolensk War against Russia. He was born in 1593 and died in 1648. Another early bearer of the name was Stanisław Karolczak, a prominent landowner and politician in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, who lived from 1620 to 1689.
During the 19th century, the Karolczak surname gained prominence in the arts and literature. Franciszek Karolczak (1799-1872) was a Polish painter and illustrator known for his portraiture and religious works. His contemporary, Józef Karolczak (1815-1887), was a celebrated poet and playwright whose works often explored themes of Polish patriotism and identity.
In the 20th century, one of the most famous individuals with the Karolczak surname was Józef Karolczak (1902-1963), a Polish military officer and politician who served as the Minister of National Defense in the post-World War II communist government of Poland.
While the Karolczak surname is still most prevalent in Poland, it has also spread to other parts of Europe and the world through emigration and diaspora communities. However, due to its Polish origins and the comparative rarity of the name outside of Poland, the vast majority of historical records and notable individuals bearing the Karolczak surname can be traced back to the country's rich cultural and historical heritage.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Karolczak
Among Census respondents with the surname Karolczak, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.2%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (1.9%) and Black (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Karolczak 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 Karolczak surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White96.2% · 102
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.9% · 2
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
- Hispanic or Latino0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Karolczak
Karolczak 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
-2 bearers (-1.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 11,183 places
2020
#152,339
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 106
-8 bearers (-7.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 7,119 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #134,037 | 116 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #145,220 | 114 | 0.04 | -2 bearers (-1.7%) | Down 11,183 places |
| 2020 | #152,339 | 106 | 0.04 | -8 bearers (-7.0%) | Down 7,119 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 Karolczak 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 | #152,339 | -4.9% |
| Count | 114 | 106 | -7.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -11.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Karolczak bearers went from 114 to 106 (-7.0% change). The surname moved down 7,119 positions in the national ranking, going from #145,220 to #152,339.
FAQ
Karolczak surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Karolczak?
Name Census estimates that about 122 living Americans carry the surname Karolczak. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,809,462 residents.
How common is Karolczak?
Karolczak ranks #152,339 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 106 people with the surname Karolczak. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (122), 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 Karolczak.
Has Karolczak become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Karolczak went from 114 recorded bearers to 106. That is a decrease of 8 (-7.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #145,220 to #152,339.
What does the Census say about the background of Karolczak?
Among Census respondents with the surname Karolczak, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.2%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (1.9%) and Black (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 Karolczak in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.2% (102 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Karolczak appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (96.2%), Asian/Pacific Islander (1.9%), Black (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 Karolczak (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 Karolczak mean?
A Polish surname derived from a diminutive form of the given name Karol. 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 Karolczak (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 share the surname Karolczak?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.