2000
#11,795
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,432
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.90
Rare Last name
Kucharski
A Polish occupational surname referring to a cook or someone who worked in the kitchen.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,573 Americans carry the last name Kucharski. That puts it at #13,063 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.75 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 133,212 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kucharski 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 Kucharski with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.6K
1 in 133,212
Census rank
#13,063
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,244 bearers of the surname Kucharski in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.75 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13063rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kucharski, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kucharski
The surname Kucharski is of Polish origin, originating from the area that is now modern-day Poland. It is derived from the Polish word "kucharz," which means "cook" or "chef." The name likely originated in the Middle Ages or earlier, as surnames derived from occupations were common during this time period.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Kucharski can be found in the Akta Metrykalne, a collection of parish records from the 16th and 17th centuries in Poland. In these records, the name is sometimes spelled as "Kucharski" or "Kucharzski."
The name Kucharski may also be related to the place name "Kuchary," which is a village in the Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship of Poland. It is possible that some individuals with the surname Kucharski may have originated from or had ties to this village.
One notable individual with the surname Kucharski was Jan Kucharski, a Polish painter and printmaker who lived from 1599 to 1667. He was known for his religious paintings and engravings, many of which can be found in churches and monasteries throughout Poland.
Another notable figure was Kazimierz Kucharski, a Polish military officer and politician who lived from 1876 to 1935. He served as a general in the Polish Army during World War I and later became a member of the Polish Sejm (parliament).
In the realm of literature, Jerzy Kucharski (1925-2003) was a Polish poet and writer who was known for his works that explored themes of Polish history and culture. His collection of poems, "Wielki Lament" (The Great Lament), published in 1963, is considered one of his most significant works.
In the field of science, Andrzej Kucharski (born 1952) is a Polish mathematician and computer scientist who has made significant contributions to the field of computational complexity theory. He has authored numerous research papers and books on the subject.
Lastly, in the world of sports, Marcin Kucharski (born 1981) is a Polish former professional tennis player. He achieved a career-high singles ranking of No. 92 in the world and won several ATP Challenger Tour titles during his career.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kucharski
Among Census respondents with the surname Kucharski, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Kucharski 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 Kucharski surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.4% · 2,096
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 66
- Two or more races2.2% · 50
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 23
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 5
- Black or African American0.2% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kucharski
Kucharski 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
#12,482
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,487
+55 bearers (+2.3%)
Per 100,000 0.84
Rank movement Down 687 places
2020
#13,063
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,244
-243 bearers (-9.8%)
Per 100,000 0.75
Rank movement Down 581 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,795 | 2,432 | 0.90 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,482 | 2,487 | 0.84 | +55 bearers (+2.3%) | Down 687 places |
| 2020 | #13,063 | 2,244 | 0.75 | -243 bearers (-9.8%) | Down 581 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 Kucharski 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 | #12,482 | #13,063 | -4.7% |
| Count | 2,487 | 2,244 | -9.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.84 | 0.75 | -10.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kucharski bearers went from 2,487 to 2,244 (-9.8% change). The surname moved down 581 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,482 to #13,063.
FAQ
Kucharski surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kucharski?
Name Census estimates that about 2,573 living Americans carry the surname Kucharski. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 133,212 residents.
How common is Kucharski?
Kucharski ranks #13,063 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.75 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 2,244 people with the surname Kucharski. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,573), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.75 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.75 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 Kucharski.
Has Kucharski become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kucharski went from 2,487 recorded bearers to 2,244. That is a decrease of 243 (-9.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #12,482 to #13,063.
What does the Census say about the background of Kucharski?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kucharski, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.2%). 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 Kucharski in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.4% (2,096 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kucharski appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.4%), Hispanic (2.9%), Two or More Races (2.2%). 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 Kucharski (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 Kucharski mean?
A Polish occupational surname referring to a cook or someone who worked in the kitchen. 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 Kucharski (0.75 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 Kucharski?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the surname Kucharski at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.