2000
#129,619
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 121
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Mirka
A Polish surname meaning "bitter" or "unpleasant".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 131 Americans carry the last name Mirka. That puts it at #146,495 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,616,445 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mirka 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
131
1 in 2,616,445
Census rank
#146,495
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
114
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 114 bearers of the surname Mirka in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 146495th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mirka, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (7.0%) and Hispanic (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mirka
The surname Mirka originates from Poland, where it first appeared in the 14th century. It is derived from the Polish word "mirka," which means "small measure" or "portion." This suggests that the name may have originally referred to a person involved in measuring or distributing goods.
In the 16th century, the name Mirka was found in records from the city of Krakow, which was a major trading center at the time. This supports the theory that the name was associated with commerce and measurement.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Mirka can be found in a manuscript from the year 1412, which mentions a merchant named Jan Mirka. This document is part of the archives of the city of Wroclaw.
The Mirka name also appears in the Akta Grodzkie, a collection of historical records from the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. In a document dated 1562, a landowner named Tomasz Mirka is mentioned.
During the 17th century, the name Mirka spread to other parts of Eastern Europe, including Belarus and Ukraine. In 1687, a Belarusian noble named Andrzej Mirka was granted a coat of arms by King Jan III Sobieski of Poland.
One of the most notable individuals with the surname Mirka was Stanislaw Mirka (1620-1689), a Polish military commander who fought in the Polish-Swedish War and the Polish-Ottoman War. He was recognized for his bravery and leadership on the battlefield.
Another prominent figure was Katarzyna Mirka (1758-1832), a Polish painter and portraitist who was active in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Her works can be found in several museums in Poland and Ukraine.
In the 19th century, the Mirka name was also found in the Czech lands. Václav Mirka (1818-1892) was a Czech historian and author who wrote extensively about the history of Bohemia and Moravia.
The surname Mirka has also been associated with various place names in Poland, such as the village of Mirkowo, which was first mentioned in historical records in the 15th century.
Throughout history, the surname Mirka has been spelled in various ways, including Mirko, Mirkow, and Mirkiewicz, reflecting regional variations and language influences.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mirka
Among Census respondents with the surname Mirka, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (7.0%) and Hispanic (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Mirka 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 Mirka surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.6% · 101
- Two or more races7.0% · 8
- Hispanic or Latino2.6% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.8% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mirka
Mirka 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
#138,304
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 121
+0 bearers (+0.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 8,685 places
2020
#146,495
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
-7 bearers (-5.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 8,191 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #129,619 | 121 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #138,304 | 121 | 0.04 | +0 bearers (+0.0%) | Down 8,685 places |
| 2020 | #146,495 | 114 | 0.04 | -7 bearers (-5.8%) | Down 8,191 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 Mirka 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 | #138,304 | #146,495 | -5.9% |
| Count | 121 | 114 | -5.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -4.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mirka bearers went from 121 to 114 (-5.8% change). The surname moved down 8,191 positions in the national ranking, going from #138,304 to #146,495.
FAQ
Mirka surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mirka?
Name Census estimates that about 131 living Americans carry the surname Mirka. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,616,445 residents.
How common is Mirka?
Mirka ranks #146,495 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 114 people with the surname Mirka. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (131), 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 Mirka.
Has Mirka become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mirka went from 121 recorded bearers to 114. That is a decrease of 7 (-5.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #138,304 to #146,495.
What does the Census say about the background of Mirka?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mirka, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (7.0%) and Hispanic (2.6%). 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 Mirka in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.6% (101 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mirka appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.6%), Two or More Races (7.0%), Hispanic (2.6%). 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 Mirka (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 Mirka mean?
A Polish surname meaning "bitter" or "unpleasant". 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 Mirka (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 Mirka?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.