2000
#91,004
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 188
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.07
Very Rare Last name
Ostrovskaya
A Russian surname derived from the word "ostrov" meaning "island."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 135 Americans carry the last name Ostrovskaya. That puts it at #143,511 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,538,921 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Ostrovskaya 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
135
1 in 2,538,921
Census rank
#143,511
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
118
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 118 bearers of the surname Ostrovskaya in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 143511th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Ostrovskaya, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.7%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Ostrovskaya
The surname Ostrovskaya originates from Russia and dates back to the late 16th century. It is a toponymic name derived from the Russian word "ostrov," meaning "island." This suggests that the name's earliest bearers likely came from or lived on an island or near an island settlement.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Ostrovskaya can be found in the Velikov Novgorod census records of 1592, where a certain Ivan Ostrovskiy is mentioned as a landowner in the Novgorod region. The name was also present in the Dvinsk region (now part of Latvia) in the early 17th century, as evidenced by the mention of a merchant named Fedor Ostrovskiy in the Dvinsk trade records of 1612.
In the 18th century, the Ostrovskaya name gained prominence with the birth of Nikolai Ostrovskiy (1723-1796), a Russian playwright and dramatist known for his satirical works. Another notable bearer of the name was Aleksandr Ostrovskiy (1823-1886), a celebrated Russian dramatist and playwright often referred to as the "Russian Shakespeare."
During the 19th century, the Ostrovskaya name was also associated with several prominent figures in the Russian military. One such figure was General Ivan Ostrovskiy (1811-1885), who served in the Crimean War and later became the governor of the Bessarabia region (now part of Moldova and Ukraine).
In the 20th century, the name Ostrovskaya gained further recognition with the birth of Nikolai Ostrovskiy (1904-1936), a Soviet writer and revolutionary whose semi-autobiographical novel "How the Steel Was Tempered" became a literary classic in the Soviet Union.
Throughout its history, the Ostrovskaya surname has undergone various spelling variations, including Ostrovskiy, Ostrovskoi, and Ostrovskoi-Loskutov. These variations often reflect regional differences or changes in spelling conventions over time.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ostrovskaya
Among Census respondents with the surname Ostrovskaya, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.7%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Ostrovskaya 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 Ostrovskaya surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White96.6% · 114
- Hispanic or Latino1.7% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Ostrovskaya
Ostrovskaya 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
#98,553
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 184
-4 bearers (-2.1%)
Per 100,000 0.06
Rank movement Down 7,549 places
2020
#143,511
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 118
-66 bearers (-35.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 44,958 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #91,004 | 188 | 0.07 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #98,553 | 184 | 0.06 | -4 bearers (-2.1%) | Down 7,549 places |
| 2020 | #143,511 | 118 | 0.04 | -66 bearers (-35.9%) | Down 44,958 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 Ostrovskaya 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 | #98,553 | #143,511 | -45.6% |
| Count | 184 | 118 | -35.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.06 | 0.04 | -34.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Ostrovskaya bearers went from 184 to 118 (-35.9% change). The surname moved down 44,958 positions in the national ranking, going from #98,553 to #143,511.
FAQ
Ostrovskaya surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Ostrovskaya?
Name Census estimates that about 135 living Americans carry the surname Ostrovskaya. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,538,921 residents.
How common is Ostrovskaya?
Ostrovskaya ranks #143,511 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 118 people with the surname Ostrovskaya. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (135), 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 Ostrovskaya.
Has Ostrovskaya become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Ostrovskaya went from 184 recorded bearers to 118. That is a decrease of 66 (-35.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #98,553 to #143,511.
What does the Census say about the background of Ostrovskaya?
Among Census respondents with the surname Ostrovskaya, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.7%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.8%). 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 Ostrovskaya in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.6% (114 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Ostrovskaya appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (96.6%), Hispanic (1.7%), Asian/Pacific Islander (0.8%). 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 Ostrovskaya (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 Ostrovskaya mean?
A Russian surname derived from the word "ostrov" meaning "island." 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 Ostrovskaya (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 Ostrovskaya?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.