2000
#37,043
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 567
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.21
Very Rare Last name
Olkowski
A Polish toponymic surname referring to someone from a place called Olków.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 602 Americans carry the last name Olkowski. That puts it at #44,135 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.18 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 569,359 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Olkowski 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
602
1 in 569,359
Census rank
#44,135
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
525
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 525 bearers of the surname Olkowski in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.18 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 44135th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Olkowski, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.7%) and Two or More Races (1.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Olkowski
The surname Olkowski is of Polish origin, and it is believed to have emerged during the medieval period, around the 13th or 14th century. The name is thought to be derived from the Polish word "olcha," which means "alder," a type of tree commonly found in Poland and other parts of Eastern Europe.
Olkowski is a toponymic surname, meaning that it originated from a place name. In this case, it is likely that the name refers to a person who lived near an alder tree or in an area where alder trees were abundant. The suffix "-owski" indicates a possessive form, suggesting that the name could have been associated with a specific location or estate owned by an individual or family.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Olkowski surname can be found in the Polish town of Olkusz, located in the historic Lesser Poland region. This town's name is derived from the same root word as the surname, further reinforcing the connection between the name and the alder tree.
During the 16th century, a notable figure named Jan Olkowski was a prominent scholar and writer who authored several works on Polish history and culture. He was born in 1540 and is considered one of the earliest known individuals to bear the Olkowski surname.
In the 18th century, a Polish nobleman named Kazimierz Olkowski played a significant role in the Polish resistance against the Russian Empire's occupation of Poland. He was born in 1725 and is remembered for his bravery and leadership during the uprising.
Another prominent individual with the Olkowski surname was Stanislaw Olkowski, a Polish artist who lived in the 19th century. He was born in 1810 and is renowned for his landscape paintings, which captured the beauty of the Polish countryside and its natural scenery, including alder trees.
During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, many Polish immigrants bearing the Olkowski surname settled in various parts of the United States, particularly in cities with large Polish communities, such as Chicago, New York, and Detroit. One notable figure from this era was Maria Olkowski, a Polish-American author and activist who fought for women's rights and advocated for the preservation of Polish culture and traditions. She was born in 1875 and played a crucial role in the Polish-American community.
Throughout its history, the Olkowski surname has been associated with various spellings and variations, such as Olkowska (the feminine form), Olkowski, and Olkowicz, among others. However, the core meaning and origins of the name remain rooted in the alder tree and its connection to specific locations in Poland.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Olkowski
Among Census respondents with the surname Olkowski, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.7%) and Two or More Races (1.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Olkowski 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 Olkowski surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.5% · 496
- Hispanic or Latino2.7% · 14
- Two or more races1.9% · 10
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 4
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Olkowski
Olkowski 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
#39,486
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 557
-10 bearers (-1.8%)
Per 100,000 0.19
Rank movement Down 2,443 places
2020
#44,135
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 525
-32 bearers (-5.7%)
Per 100,000 0.18
Rank movement Down 4,649 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #37,043 | 567 | 0.21 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #39,486 | 557 | 0.19 | -10 bearers (-1.8%) | Down 2,443 places |
| 2020 | #44,135 | 525 | 0.18 | -32 bearers (-5.7%) | Down 4,649 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 Olkowski 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 | #39,486 | #44,135 | -11.8% |
| Count | 557 | 525 | -5.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.19 | 0.18 | -7.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Olkowski bearers went from 557 to 525 (-5.7% change). The surname moved down 4,649 positions in the national ranking, going from #39,486 to #44,135.
FAQ
Olkowski surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Olkowski?
Name Census estimates that about 602 living Americans carry the surname Olkowski. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 569,359 residents.
How common is Olkowski?
Olkowski ranks #44,135 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.18 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 525 people with the surname Olkowski. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (602), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.18 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.18 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 Olkowski.
Has Olkowski become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Olkowski went from 557 recorded bearers to 525. That is a decrease of 32 (-5.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #39,486 to #44,135.
What does the Census say about the background of Olkowski?
Among Census respondents with the surname Olkowski, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.7%) and Two or More Races (1.9%). 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 Olkowski in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.5% (496 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Olkowski appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.5%), Hispanic (2.7%), Two or More Races (1.9%). 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 Olkowski (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 Olkowski mean?
A Polish toponymic surname referring to someone from a place called Olków. 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 Olkowski (0.18 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 Olkowski?
See how many people are called Olkowski on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.