2000
#146,011
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 104
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Merzlak
A surname of Slavic origin meaning "one who freezes easily" or "frosty person."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 139 Americans carry the last name Merzlak. That puts it at #141,309 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,465,859 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Merzlak 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
139
1 in 2,465,859
Census rank
#141,309
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
121
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 121 bearers of the surname Merzlak in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 141309th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Merzlak, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.6%. The next largest groups are Black (5.0%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (5.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Merzlak
The surname "MERZLAK" traces its origins back to Poland. It is derived from the Polish word "mrozić", which means "to freeze". The name is believed to have originated in the 16th or 17th century, and was likely given to someone who lived in a particularly cold region or worked with ice or snow.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name "MERZLAK" can be found in the records of the Polish town of Krakow, where a man named Jan Merzlak was listed as a resident in the late 16th century. The name also appears in various church records and tax rolls from that time period, indicating that it was relatively common in certain parts of Poland.
In the 18th century, a Polish soldier named Stanislaw Merzlak fought in the Napoleonic Wars and was awarded a medal for his bravery. His name and exploits were recorded in several contemporary accounts of the wars, providing a historical reference for the name.
Another notable bearer of the surname was Wladyslaw Merzlak, a Polish poet and writer who lived in the late 19th century. He published several collections of poetry and was known for his vivid descriptions of nature and the Polish countryside.
In the early 20th century, a Polish-American family with the surname "MERZLAK" settled in Chicago, where they opened a successful bakery. The bakery, known as "Merzlak's Bakery", became a local institution and was run by several generations of the family.
Other notable individuals with the surname "MERZLAK" include Andrzej Merzlak, a Polish sculptor who lived in the 17th century and created several works for churches and noble families, and Katarzyna Merzlak, a Polish botanist and naturalist who lived in the 19th century and made significant contributions to the study of Polish flora.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Merzlak
Among Census respondents with the surname Merzlak, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.6%. The next largest groups are Black (5.0%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (5.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Merzlak 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 Merzlak surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.6% · 106
- Black or African American5.0% · 6
- American Indian and Alaska Native5.0% · 6
- Hispanic or Latino1.7% · 2
- Two or more races0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Merzlak
Merzlak 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
#132,206
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 128
+24 bearers (+23.1%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 13,805 places
2020
#141,309
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 121
-7 bearers (-5.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 9,103 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #146,011 | 104 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #132,206 | 128 | 0.04 | +24 bearers (+23.1%) | Up 13,805 places |
| 2020 | #141,309 | 121 | 0.04 | -7 bearers (-5.5%) | Down 9,103 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 Merzlak 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 | #132,206 | #141,309 | -6.9% |
| Count | 128 | 121 | -5.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | 1.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Merzlak bearers went from 128 to 121 (-5.5% change). The surname moved down 9,103 positions in the national ranking, going from #132,206 to #141,309.
FAQ
Merzlak surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Merzlak?
Name Census estimates that about 139 living Americans carry the surname Merzlak. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,465,859 residents.
How common is Merzlak?
Merzlak ranks #141,309 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 121 people with the surname Merzlak. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (139), 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 Merzlak.
Has Merzlak become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Merzlak went from 128 recorded bearers to 121. That is a decrease of 7 (-5.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #132,206 to #141,309.
What does the Census say about the background of Merzlak?
Among Census respondents with the surname Merzlak, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.6%. The next largest groups are Black (5.0%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (5.0%). 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 Merzlak in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.6% (106 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Merzlak appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.6%), Black (5.0%), American Indian/Alaska Native (5.0%). 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 Merzlak (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 Merzlak mean?
A surname of Slavic origin meaning "one who freezes easily" or "frosty person." 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 Merzlak (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 Americans have the surname Merzlak?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.