2000
#143,847
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 106
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Oks
A surname of Polish or Central European origin, possibly derived from "ox".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 126 Americans carry the last name Oks. That puts it at #149,446 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,720,273 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Oks 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
126
1 in 2,720,273
Census rank
#149,446
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
110
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 110 bearers of the surname Oks in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 149446th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Oks, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.3%) and Black (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Oks
The surname OKS has its origins in the Slavic regions of Eastern Europe, specifically in the areas that are now modern-day Poland and Ukraine. The name is believed to have emerged during the Middle Ages, around the 13th or 14th century.
The name OKS is thought to be derived from the Old Slavic word "oks," which meant "ox" or "bull." This suggests that the surname may have initially been an occupational name for someone who worked with oxen, such as a farmer, plowman, or herdsman.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name OKS can be found in a 15th-century Polish manuscript, which lists a certain "Jan OKS" as a landowner in the region of Wielkopolska (Greater Poland). This provides evidence that the name was in use among the Polish nobility during that period.
In the 16th century, there are records of an OKS family residing in the town of Lublin, located in what is now eastern Poland. This branch of the OKS family is believed to have originated from the nearby village of Oksy, which may have taken its name from the same Slavic root as the surname.
A notable figure bearing the OKS surname was Nikolai OKS, a Russian military commander who fought in the Napoleonic Wars. He was born in 1785 and served under Field Marshal Mikhail Kutuzov during the French invasion of Russia in 1812.
Another individual of historical significance was Franciszek OKS, a Polish painter and art teacher who lived from 1825 to 1897. He is best known for his landscape paintings depicting the rural scenery of his native Galicia region (now part of modern-day Ukraine and Poland).
In the 19th century, there was a notable OKS family in the town of Lviv (then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, now in Ukraine). One member of this family, Teodor OKS (1840-1917), was a prominent lawyer and political activist who advocated for Polish autonomy within the empire.
During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, several OKS families emigrated from Eastern Europe to other parts of the world, including the United States, Canada, and Australia. This led to the further spread and diversification of the surname in these regions.
One final example of a historical figure with the OKS surname is Wladyslaw OKS, a Polish economist and academic who lived from 1892 to 1962. He was a professor at the University of Warsaw and made significant contributions to the field of economic theory and policy in Poland.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Oks
Among Census respondents with the surname Oks, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.3%) and Black (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Oks 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 Oks surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.2% · 97
- Hispanic or Latino7.3% · 8
- Black or African American1.8% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.8% · 2
- Two or more races0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Oks
Oks 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
#148,347
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
+5 bearers (+4.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 4,500 places
2020
#149,446
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
-1 bearers (-0.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 1,099 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #143,847 | 106 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #148,347 | 111 | 0.04 | +5 bearers (+4.7%) | Down 4,500 places |
| 2020 | #149,446 | 110 | 0.04 | -1 bearers (-0.9%) | Down 1,099 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 Oks 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 | #148,347 | #149,446 | -0.7% |
| Count | 111 | 110 | -0.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -8.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Oks bearers went from 111 to 110 (-0.9% change). The surname moved down 1,099 positions in the national ranking, going from #148,347 to #149,446.
FAQ
Oks surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Oks?
Name Census estimates that about 126 living Americans carry the surname Oks. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,720,273 residents.
How common is Oks?
Oks ranks #149,446 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 110 people with the surname Oks. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (126), 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 Oks.
Has Oks become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Oks went from 111 recorded bearers to 110. That is a decrease of 1 (-0.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #148,347 to #149,446.
What does the Census say about the background of Oks?
Among Census respondents with the surname Oks, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.3%) and Black (1.8%). 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 Oks in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.2% (97 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Oks appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.2%), Hispanic (7.3%), Black (1.8%). 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 Oks (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 Oks mean?
A surname of Polish or Central European origin, possibly derived from "ox". 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 Oks (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 Oks?
For a quick modern take, check how common the surname Oks is on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.