2000
#20,898
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,174
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.44
Rare Last name
Mikulski
Of Polish origin, referring to someone from the village of Mikulka.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,289 Americans carry the last name Mikulski. That puts it at #23,332 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.38 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 265,907 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mikulski 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
1.3K
1 in 265,907
Census rank
#23,332
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,124 bearers of the surname Mikulski in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.38 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 23332nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mikulski, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.1%) and Two or More Races (1.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mikulski
The surname Mikulski is of Polish origin, derived from the personal name Mikula, which is a diminutive form of the name Mikolaj, the Polish equivalent of Nicholas. The name can be traced back to the Middle Ages in Poland.
The earliest recorded instances of the name Mikulski date back to the 15th century in various historical records and documents from Poland. It was initially prevalent in the regions of Greater Poland, Masovia, and Lesser Poland.
In the 16th century, the Mikulski surname appeared in the historical records of the Krakow region, where it was associated with notable families and individuals. One such individual was Jan Mikulski, a prominent merchant and landowner who lived in the late 16th century.
The name Mikulski has its roots in the Slavic word "miku," which means "peace" or "peaceful." This suggests that the original bearers of the name may have been known for their peaceful or tranquil dispositions.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals with the surname Mikulski. One of the earliest was Stanislaw Mikulski, a Polish writer and poet who lived in the 17th century and was known for his satirical works.
In the 18th century, Franciszek Mikulski was a renowned Polish painter who gained recognition for his religious and historical paintings. He lived from 1722 to 1796.
During the 19th century, Wladyslaw Mikulski was a prominent Polish lawyer and politician who served as a member of the Galician Diet, the regional parliament of the Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria, which was part of the Austrian Empire. He lived from 1838 to 1905.
In the 20th century, Barbara Mikulski, an American politician, became the first Democratic woman elected to the United States Senate from Maryland. She served in the Senate from 1987 to 2017 and was a prominent figure in American politics.
Another notable individual with the surname Mikulski was Jan Mikulski, a Polish-American mathematician and computer scientist who made significant contributions to the fields of theoretical computer science and artificial intelligence. He was born in 1940 and passed away in 2009.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mikulski
Among Census respondents with the surname Mikulski, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.1%) and Two or More Races (1.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Mikulski 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 Mikulski surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.8% · 1,043
- Hispanic or Latino4.1% · 46
- Two or more races1.9% · 21
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 8
- Black or African American0.4% · 4
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mikulski
Mikulski 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
#21,972
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,181
+7 bearers (+0.6%)
Per 100,000 0.40
Rank movement Down 1,074 places
2020
#23,332
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,124
-57 bearers (-4.8%)
Per 100,000 0.38
Rank movement Down 1,360 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #20,898 | 1,174 | 0.44 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #21,972 | 1,181 | 0.40 | +7 bearers (+0.6%) | Down 1,074 places |
| 2020 | #23,332 | 1,124 | 0.38 | -57 bearers (-4.8%) | Down 1,360 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 Mikulski 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 | #21,972 | #23,332 | -6.2% |
| Count | 1,181 | 1,124 | -4.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.40 | 0.38 | -6.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mikulski bearers went from 1,181 to 1,124 (-4.8% change). The surname moved down 1,360 positions in the national ranking, going from #21,972 to #23,332.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Mikulski
FAQ
Mikulski surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mikulski?
Name Census estimates that about 1,289 living Americans carry the surname Mikulski. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 265,907 residents.
How common is Mikulski?
Mikulski ranks #23,332 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.38 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 1,124 people with the surname Mikulski. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,289), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.38 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.38 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 Mikulski.
Has Mikulski become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mikulski went from 1,181 recorded bearers to 1,124. That is a decrease of 57 (-4.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #21,972 to #23,332.
What does the Census say about the background of Mikulski?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mikulski, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.8%. 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 Mikulski in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.8% (1,043 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mikulski appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.8%), 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 Mikulski (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 Mikulski mean?
Of Polish origin, referring to someone from the village of Mikulka. 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 Mikulski (0.38 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 are called Mikulski?
Find out how many people have the last name Mikulski on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.