2000
#120,330
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 133
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Mishko
A surname of Ukrainian origin, derived from the diminutive form of the name "Mikhail" or "Michael".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 118 Americans carry the last name Mishko. That puts it at #154,182 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,904,698 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mishko 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
118
1 in 2,904,698
Census rank
#154,182
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
103
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 103 bearers of the surname Mishko in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 154182nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mishko, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mishko
The surname "MISHKO" is believed to have originated from Belarus, a country in Eastern Europe, during the late medieval period. It is derived from the Belarusian word "misha," which means "bear." This suggests that the name may have initially been a nickname or a descriptive name given to someone who was associated with bears or bear-like qualities.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname "MISHKO" can be traced back to the 16th century in various historical documents and records from the Belarusian region. One notable example is the mention of a landowner named Ivan Mishko in the court records of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, dated 1567.
In the 17th century, the name appears in several parish registers and census records from the Vitebsk region of Belarus. For instance, a farmer named Fiodar Mishko was listed in the tax records of the village of Polotsk in 1634.
During the 18th century, the surname "MISHKO" gained prominence in the Grodno region of Belarus, where it was associated with several influential families. One notable figure was Mikita Mishko, a renowned craftsman and woodcarver who lived from 1723 to 1798. His intricate carvings adorned many churches and noble residences in the area.
In the 19th century, the surname spread beyond Belarus to neighboring regions, including parts of Ukraine and Russia. A notable bearer of the name was Hryhorii Mishko, a Ukrainian writer and poet who lived from 1845 to 1919. His works were instrumental in preserving and promoting the cultural heritage of his homeland.
Another significant figure was Yevhen Mishko, a Belarusian military officer who fought in the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905. He was born in 1875 and later became a respected military strategist and author of several books on warfare tactics.
As the name "MISHKO" traveled across borders, it underwent various spelling variations, such as "Mishko," "Mishkou," and "Mishkov," reflecting the linguistic influences of different regions. However, the core meaning and origin of the name remained rooted in its Belarusian heritage.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mishko
Among Census respondents with the surname Mishko, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Mishko 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 Mishko surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.2% · 97
- Two or more races5.8% · 6
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mishko
Mishko 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
#140,157
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 119
-14 bearers (-10.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 19,827 places
2020
#154,182
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 103
-16 bearers (-13.4%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 14,025 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #120,330 | 133 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #140,157 | 119 | 0.04 | -14 bearers (-10.5%) | Down 19,827 places |
| 2020 | #154,182 | 103 | 0.03 | -16 bearers (-13.4%) | Down 14,025 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 Mishko 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 | #140,157 | #154,182 | -10.0% |
| Count | 119 | 103 | -13.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -13.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mishko bearers went from 119 to 103 (-13.4% change). The surname moved down 14,025 positions in the national ranking, going from #140,157 to #154,182.
FAQ
Mishko surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mishko?
Name Census estimates that about 118 living Americans carry the surname Mishko. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,904,698 residents.
How common is Mishko?
Mishko ranks #154,182 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 103 people with the surname Mishko. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (118), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Mishko.
Has Mishko become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mishko went from 119 recorded bearers to 103. That is a decrease of 16 (-13.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #140,157 to #154,182.
What does the Census say about the background of Mishko?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mishko, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.8%). 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 Mishko in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.2% (97 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mishko appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.2%), Two or More Races (5.8%). 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 Mishko (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 Mishko mean?
A surname of Ukrainian origin, derived from the diminutive form of the name "Mikhail" or "Michael". 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 Mishko (0.03 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 Mishko?
Find out how many Americans have the surname Mishko on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.