2010
#96,799
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 188
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.06
Very Rare Last name
Kucuk
A Turkish surname meaning small or little.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 296 Americans carry the last name Kucuk. That puts it at #79,581 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.09 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,157,954 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kucuk 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 Kucuk with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
296
1 in 1,157,954
Census rank
#79,581
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
258
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 258 bearers of the surname Kucuk in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.09 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 79581st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kucuk, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (1.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kucuk
The surname "KUCUK" is of Turkish origin and can be traced back to the Ottoman Empire, which ruled over a vast territory spanning from Southeastern Europe to the Middle East and North Africa for over six centuries, from 1299 to 1923. This surname is derived from the Turkish word "küçük," which means "small" or "little."
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname "KUCUK" can be found in the Ottoman tax registers (tahrir defterleri) from the 16th century, which were used to record the names and occupations of taxpayers across the empire. These records provide valuable insights into the historical distribution and prevalence of surnames like "KUCUK" in various regions of the Ottoman Empire.
During the Ottoman era, surnames were often derived from physical characteristics, occupations, or places of origin. The surname "KUCUK" likely originated as a descriptive name given to individuals who were of small stature or perhaps as a reference to someone being the younger sibling or the youngest member of a family.
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, as the Ottoman Empire underwent modernization and westernization, the practice of adopting hereditary surnames became more widespread. It is during this period that the surname "KUCUK" likely solidified as a permanent family name.
One notable historical figure who bore the surname "KUCUK" was Hüseyin Kucuk, a Turkish military officer and statesman who lived from 1873 to 1957. He played a prominent role in the Turkish War of Independence and later served as the Minister of National Defense and the Minister of Interior Affairs in the early years of the Republic of Turkey.
Another individual with the surname "KUCUK" was Ismail Hakkı Kucuk, a Turkish calligrapher and artist who lived from 1910 to 1981. He was renowned for his mastery of the art of Islamic calligraphy and made significant contributions to the preservation and promotion of this traditional art form.
In the realm of literature, Mehmet Kucuk, a Turkish novelist and short story writer born in 1945, has gained recognition for his works that explore themes of rural life, migration, and social issues in Turkey.
The surname "KUCUK" has also been associated with notable academics and scholars, such as Sezai Kucuk, a Turkish professor of economics who lived from 1940 to 2019 and made significant contributions to the field of development economics.
Lastly, Fikret Kucuk, a Turkish businessman and philanthropist born in 1958, is known for his involvement in various charitable initiatives and his support for education and healthcare initiatives in Turkey.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kucuk
Among Census respondents with the surname Kucuk, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (1.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Kucuk 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 Kucuk surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.2% · 243
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 9
- Two or more races1.9% · 5
- Black or African American0.4% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kucuk
Kucuk appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#79,581
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 258
+70 bearers (+37.2%)
Per 100,000 0.09
Rank movement Up 17,218 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #96,799 | 188 | 0.06 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #79,581 | 258 | 0.09 | +70 bearers (+37.2%) | Up 17,218 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 Kucuk 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 | #96,799 | #79,581 | 17.8% |
| Count | 188 | 258 | 37.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.06 | 0.09 | 43.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kucuk bearers went from 188 to 258 (+37.2% change). The surname moved up 17,218 positions in the national ranking, going from #96,799 to #79,581.
FAQ
Kucuk surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kucuk?
Name Census estimates that about 296 living Americans carry the surname Kucuk. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,157,954 residents.
How common is Kucuk?
Kucuk ranks #79,581 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.09 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 258 people with the surname Kucuk. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (296), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.09 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.09 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 Kucuk.
Has Kucuk become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kucuk went from 188 recorded bearers to 258. That is an increase of 70 (+37.2%). In the national ranking it rose from #96,799 to #79,581.
What does the Census say about the background of Kucuk?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kucuk, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) 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 Kucuk in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.2% (243 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kucuk appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.2%), Hispanic (3.5%), 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 Kucuk (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 Kucuk mean?
A Turkish surname meaning small or little. 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 Kucuk (0.09 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 Kucuk?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people are called Kucuk at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.