2000
#11,660
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,465
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.91
Rare Last name
Kovac
An occupational surname referring to a metalworker, blacksmith, or forger, derived from the Slavic word "kovač" meaning "blacksmith."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,198 Americans carry the last name Kovac. That puts it at #10,909 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.93 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 107,178 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kovac 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Kovac with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.2K
1 in 107,178
Census rank
#10,909
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,789 bearers of the surname Kovac in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.93 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10909th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kovac, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.1%) and Two or More Races (1.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kovac
The surname Kovac is of Slavic origin and is most commonly found in Croatia, Serbia, and other parts of the Balkans. The name is derived from the Slavic word "kováč," which means "blacksmith" or "metalworker." This suggests that the earliest bearers of this surname were likely involved in the metalworking trade.
The name can be traced back to the Middle Ages, and it is believed to have been first used as a descriptive surname to identify individuals by their occupation. In the 14th century, records from the city of Split in Croatia mention a person named Petrus Kováč, which is one of the earliest known instances of the name.
In the 15th century, the name appears in various historical documents in the region, such as the "Codex Diplomaticus Regni Croatiae, Dalmatiae et Slavoniae," which contains references to individuals with the surname Kovac or its variants.
One notable bearer of the name was Josip Kovačić (1854-1934), a Croatian writer and politician who played a significant role in the Croatian national revival movement in the late 19th century. Another famous Kovac was Mirko Kovač (1938-2013), a prominent Serbian writer and novelist whose works explored themes of identity and the human condition.
Other historical figures with the surname Kovac include Marin Kovačić (1508-1570), a Croatian military commander and nobleman who fought against the Ottoman Empire, and Petar Kovačić (1816-1892), a Croatian lawyer and politician who was a leading figure in the Croatian National Revival.
In the 19th century, the name became more widespread as industrialization and urbanization led to an increase in metalworking and related trades. Consequently, the surname Kovac was adopted by families across the Slavic regions, and it continues to be a common surname in these areas today.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kovac
Among Census respondents with the surname Kovac, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.1%) and Two or More Races (1.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Kovac 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 Kovac surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.9% · 2,563
- Hispanic or Latino4.1% · 114
- Two or more races1.9% · 52
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.8% · 50
- Black or African American0.3% · 8
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kovac
Kovac 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
#11,299
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,795
+330 bearers (+13.4%)
Per 100,000 0.95
Rank movement Up 361 places
2020
#10,909
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,789
-6 bearers (-0.2%)
Per 100,000 0.93
Rank movement Up 390 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,660 | 2,465 | 0.91 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,299 | 2,795 | 0.95 | +330 bearers (+13.4%) | Up 361 places |
| 2020 | #10,909 | 2,789 | 0.93 | -6 bearers (-0.2%) | Up 390 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 Kovac 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 | #11,299 | #10,909 | 3.5% |
| Count | 2,795 | 2,789 | -0.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.95 | 0.93 | -1.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kovac bearers went from 2,795 to 2,789 (-0.2% change). The surname moved up 390 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,299 to #10,909.
FAQ
Kovac surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kovac?
Name Census estimates that about 3,198 living Americans carry the surname Kovac. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 107,178 residents.
How common is Kovac?
Kovac ranks #10,909 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.93 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,789 people with the surname Kovac. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,198), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.93 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.93 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Kovac.
Has Kovac become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kovac went from 2,795 recorded bearers to 2,789. That is a decrease of 6 (-0.2%). In the national ranking it rose from #11,299 to #10,909.
What does the Census say about the background of Kovac?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kovac, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.1%) and Two or More Races (1.9%). 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 Kovac in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.9% (2,563 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kovac appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.9%), Hispanic (4.1%), Two or More Races (1.9%). 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 Kovac (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 Kovac mean?
An occupational surname referring to a metalworker, blacksmith, or forger, derived from the Slavic word "kovač" meaning "blacksmith." 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 Kovac (0.93 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 Kovac?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.