2010
#134,712
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 125
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Milovic
A Serbian surname derived from the Slavic word "milost" meaning favor or mercy.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 130 Americans carry the last name Milovic. That puts it at #147,221 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,636,572 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Milovic 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
130
1 in 2,636,572
Census rank
#147,221
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
113
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 113 bearers of the surname Milovic in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 147221st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Milovic, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.1%) and Black (2.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Milovic
The surname Milovic is believed to have originated in the Balkan region, specifically in the areas of modern-day Serbia, Croatia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina. It likely emerged during the medieval period, possibly as early as the 12th or 13th century.
Milovic is thought to be derived from the Slavic root "mil," which means "grace" or "mercy." This root is found in various Slavic languages and may have been used as a personal name or nickname before becoming a hereditary surname. The suffix "-ovic" (or its variants, such as "-ovich" or "-ović") is a common Slavic patronymic, indicating that the name initially referred to the son or descendant of someone named Milo or a similar variant.
Some of the earliest recorded instances of the name Milovic can be found in various historical documents and records from the region. For example, there are mentions of individuals with this surname in the Dubrovnik archives, dating back to the 15th century. Additionally, the name appears in the Venetian cadastral records of Dalmatia from the 16th and 17th centuries.
One notable bearer of the Milovic surname was Miloš Milović, a Serbian revolutionary who lived in the early 19th century (1768-1836). He played a significant role in the First Serbian Uprising against the Ottoman Empire and was a close ally of the famous Serbian leader Karađorđe Petrović.
Another individual of historical significance was Milorad Milović (1852-1935), a Serbian engineer and university professor who made significant contributions to the development of civil engineering and architectural education in Serbia.
In the realm of literature, Radovan Milović (1933-2018) was a prominent Serbian poet, essayist, and literary critic. His works explored themes of existentialism, philosophy, and the human condition, and he received numerous awards and accolades for his literary achievements.
The name Milović can also be found in various geographical locations, such as the village of Milovići in western Serbia, which likely derived its name from the surname or vice versa.
It is worth noting that the surname Milović has also been spelled in various ways throughout history, including Milovič, Milovitch, and Milovicz, reflecting the linguistic and cultural diversity of the regions where it originated and spread.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Milovic
Among Census respondents with the surname Milovic, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.1%) and Black (2.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Milovic 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 Milovic surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White85.0% · 96
- Hispanic or Latino7.1% · 8
- Black or African American2.7% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.8% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.8% · 2
- Two or more races1.8% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Milovic
Milovic 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
#147,221
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
-12 bearers (-9.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 12,509 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #134,712 | 125 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #147,221 | 113 | 0.04 | -12 bearers (-9.6%) | Down 12,509 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 Milovic 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 | #134,712 | #147,221 | -9.3% |
| Count | 125 | 113 | -9.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -5.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Milovic bearers went from 125 to 113 (-9.6% change). The surname moved down 12,509 positions in the national ranking, going from #134,712 to #147,221.
FAQ
Milovic surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Milovic?
Name Census estimates that about 130 living Americans carry the surname Milovic. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,636,572 residents.
How common is Milovic?
Milovic ranks #147,221 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 113 people with the surname Milovic. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (130), 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 Milovic.
Has Milovic become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Milovic went from 125 recorded bearers to 113. That is a decrease of 12 (-9.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #134,712 to #147,221.
What does the Census say about the background of Milovic?
Among Census respondents with the surname Milovic, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.1%) and Black (2.7%). 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 Milovic in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.0% (96 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Milovic appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (85.0%), Hispanic (7.1%), Black (2.7%). 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 Milovic (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 Milovic mean?
A Serbian surname derived from the Slavic word "milost" meaning favor or mercy. 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 Milovic (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 are called Milovic?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the surname Milovic at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.