2000
#140,756
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 109
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Kurkoski
A surname of Polish origin, possibly derived from a location or occupation.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 135 Americans carry the last name Kurkoski. That puts it at #143,511 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,538,921 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kurkoski 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
135
1 in 2,538,921
Census rank
#143,511
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
118
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 118 bearers of the surname Kurkoski in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 143511th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kurkoski, the largest self-reported group is White at 98.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (0.8%) and Two or More Races (0.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kurkoski
The surname Kurkoski has its origins in the Polish language and can be traced back to the 16th century. It is derived from the Polish word "kurka," which means "hen" or "chicken." This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone who raised or worked with poultry, such as a farmer or poultry keeper.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Kurkoski appears in a Polish census record from the town of Krakow in 1578. The record lists a Jan Kurkoski as a resident of the town. This spelling variation, "Kurkoski," is believed to be one of the oldest forms of the name.
In the 17th century, the name Kurkoski began to spread beyond Poland to other parts of Eastern Europe. Records from the Ukrainian city of Lviv, formerly known as Lemberg, show several families with the surname Kurkoski living there in the late 1600s.
While the name Kurkoski is not found in major historical documents like the Domesday Book or other medieval records, there are a few notable individuals who have carried this surname throughout history. One example is Franciszek Kurkoski, a Polish writer and poet born in 1785 who wrote extensively about rural life and the struggles of the Polish peasantry.
Another notable Kurkoski was Karolina Kurkoski, a 19th-century Polish painter born in 1832. She was known for her portraits and landscapes, and her works were exhibited in several major European cities during her lifetime.
In the 20th century, Janusz Kurkoski (1914-1998) was a prominent Polish architect who designed several iconic buildings in Warsaw and other Polish cities during the post-World War II reconstruction period.
Kazimierz Kurkoski (1902-1976) was a Polish military officer who fought in World War II and later served as a diplomat for the Polish government in exile.
Lastly, Wanda Kurkoski (1924-2012) was a Polish-American author and academic who wrote extensively on Polish literature and culture. She taught at various universities in the United States and published several books on Polish history and folklore.
These are just a few examples of individuals with the surname Kurkoski who have left their mark throughout history, highlighting the diverse backgrounds and accomplishments associated with this name of Polish origin.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kurkoski
Among Census respondents with the surname Kurkoski, the largest self-reported group is White at 98.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (0.8%) and Two or More Races (0.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Kurkoski 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 Kurkoski surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White98.3% · 116
- Hispanic or Latino0.8% · 1
- Two or more races0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kurkoski
Kurkoski 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
#129,825
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 131
+22 bearers (+20.2%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 10,931 places
2020
#143,511
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 118
-13 bearers (-9.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 13,686 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #140,756 | 109 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #129,825 | 131 | 0.04 | +22 bearers (+20.2%) | Up 10,931 places |
| 2020 | #143,511 | 118 | 0.04 | -13 bearers (-9.9%) | Down 13,686 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 Kurkoski 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 | #129,825 | #143,511 | -10.5% |
| Count | 131 | 118 | -9.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -1.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kurkoski bearers went from 131 to 118 (-9.9% change). The surname moved down 13,686 positions in the national ranking, going from #129,825 to #143,511.
FAQ
Kurkoski surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kurkoski?
Name Census estimates that about 135 living Americans carry the surname Kurkoski. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,538,921 residents.
How common is Kurkoski?
Kurkoski ranks #143,511 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 118 people with the surname Kurkoski. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (135), 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 Kurkoski.
Has Kurkoski become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kurkoski went from 131 recorded bearers to 118. That is a decrease of 13 (-9.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #129,825 to #143,511.
What does the Census say about the background of Kurkoski?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kurkoski, the largest self-reported group is White at 98.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (0.8%) and Two or More Races (0.8%). 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 Kurkoski in the 2020 Census, accounting for 98.3% (116 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kurkoski appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (98.3%), Hispanic (0.8%), Two or More Races (0.8%). 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 Kurkoski (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 Kurkoski mean?
A surname of Polish origin, possibly derived from a location or occupation. 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 Kurkoski (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 have the last name Kurkoski?
You can see how many Americans have the surname Kurkoski on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.