2000
#128,797
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 122
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Novotnak
A surname likely of Slavic origin meaning "newcomer" or "new settler".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 117 Americans carry the last name Novotnak. That puts it at #154,755 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,929,524 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Novotnak 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
117
1 in 2,929,524
Census rank
#154,755
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
102
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 102 bearers of the surname Novotnak in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 154755th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Novotnak, the largest self-reported group is White at 100.0%.
Origin
Meaning and origin of Novotnak
The surname NOVOTNAK is of Slavic origin, with its roots traced back to the regions of modern-day Czech Republic and Slovakia. It is believed to have emerged during the late Middle Ages, around the 14th or 15th century.
The name NOVOTNAK is derived from the Czech word "novotný," which means "new" or "recent." It was likely used as a descriptive surname, referring to someone who had recently arrived in a particular area or someone who was considered a newcomer. The suffix "-ak" is a common Slavic ending used to form surnames.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the NOVOTNAK surname can be found in the Liber Vetustissimus, an ancient register of the city of Olomouc, Moravia (now part of the Czech Republic), dating back to the 15th century. This document lists several individuals with variations of the name, such as "Novotny" and "Nowotniak."
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the NOVOTNAK surname appeared in various historical records across the region, including tax rolls, land deeds, and church registers. One notable individual was Jan Novotnak, a prominent merchant and landowner from the town of Trnava (now in Slovakia), who lived in the late 16th century.
In the 18th century, the NOVOTNAK surname can be found in the records of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, which encompassed parts of modern-day Czech Republic, Slovakia, and neighboring countries. One individual worth mentioning is Václav Novotnak (1720-1792), a renowned Czech composer and organist who served at the Church of St. James in Prague.
As the NOVOTNAK family spread across Central and Eastern Europe, the surname underwent various spelling variations, such as Novotnak, Nowotniak, and Novotnák. One notable figure from the 19th century was Kazimierz Novotnak (1836-1908), a Polish writer and journalist who contributed to the development of the Polish language and literature.
In the 20th century, the NOVOTNAK surname continued to be present in various parts of Europe, including the former Czechoslovakia and neighboring countries. One prominent individual was Juraj Novotnak (1905-1986), a Slovak writer and poet known for his works celebrating the beauty of his homeland.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Novotnak
Among Census respondents with the surname Novotnak, the largest self-reported group is White at 100.0%.
The bar chart below shows how Novotnak 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 Novotnak surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White100.0% · 102
Timeline
Historical Census data for Novotnak
Novotnak 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
#150,452
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 109
-13 bearers (-10.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 21,655 places
2020
#154,755
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
-7 bearers (-6.4%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 4,303 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #128,797 | 122 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #150,452 | 109 | 0.04 | -13 bearers (-10.7%) | Down 21,655 places |
| 2020 | #154,755 | 102 | 0.03 | -7 bearers (-6.4%) | Down 4,303 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 Novotnak 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 | #150,452 | #154,755 | -2.9% |
| Count | 109 | 102 | -6.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -14.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Novotnak bearers went from 109 to 102 (-6.4% change). The surname moved down 4,303 positions in the national ranking, going from #150,452 to #154,755.
FAQ
Novotnak surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Novotnak?
Name Census estimates that about 117 living Americans carry the surname Novotnak. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,929,524 residents.
How common is Novotnak?
Novotnak ranks #154,755 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 102 people with the surname Novotnak. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (117), 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 Novotnak.
Has Novotnak become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Novotnak went from 109 recorded bearers to 102. That is a decrease of 7 (-6.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #150,452 to #154,755.
What does the Census say about the background of Novotnak?
Among Census respondents with the surname Novotnak, the largest self-reported group is White at 100.0%. 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 Novotnak in the 2020 Census, accounting for 100.0% (102 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Novotnak appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (100.0%). 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 Novotnak (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 Novotnak mean?
A surname likely of Slavic origin meaning "newcomer" or "new settler". 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 Novotnak (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 surname Novotnak?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.