2000
#4,647
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,980
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.59
Rare Last name
Ostrowski
Derived from a place name meaning "sharp island" in Polish, likely referring to a family's place of origin.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 7,513 Americans carry the last name Ostrowski. That puts it at #5,159 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.19 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 45,622 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Ostrowski 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Ostrowski with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
7.5K
1 in 45,622
Census rank
#5,159
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
6.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 6,552 bearers of the surname Ostrowski in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.19 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5159th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Ostrowski, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (2.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Ostrowski
The surname Ostrowski is of Polish origin, originating from the region of Wielkopolska in western Poland. It is a toponymic surname, derived from the place name "Ostrów," which means "island" or "marsh" in Polish.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname Ostrowski can be traced back to the 14th century, when it appeared in various Polish records and documents. One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Jan Ostrowski, a Polish nobleman who lived in the late 14th century and served as a courtier to King Władysław II Jagiełło.
In the 16th century, the Ostrowski family gained prominence in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, with several members holding important positions in the government and military. One notable figure was Jakub Ostrowski (1510-1568), a Polish diplomat and military commander who served as the Castellan of Sandomierz.
During the 17th century, the Ostrowski surname became associated with several prominent Polish writers and intellectuals. One of the most famous was Jan Andrzej Ostrowski (1610-1684), a Polish poet and philosopher who was a member of the prestigious Polish Brethren, a Protestant group that advocated for religious tolerance.
Another notable bearer of the Ostrowski surname was Tomasz Ostrowski (1735-1817), a Polish nobleman and military officer who played a significant role in the Kościuszko Uprising against Russian rule in the late 18th century.
In the 19th century, the Ostrowski family continued to produce notable figures, including Józef Ostrowski (1850-1923), a Polish painter and art critic who was a prominent figure in the Young Poland movement, a group of artists and writers who sought to revive Polish culture and identity.
Throughout its history, the Ostrowski surname has been associated with various place names and older spellings, such as Ostrowsky, Ostrovskii, and Ostrovskiy, reflecting the diverse regions and ethnicities within the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and later the Russian Empire.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ostrowski
Among Census respondents with the surname Ostrowski, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (2.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Ostrowski 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 Ostrowski surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.6% · 6,133
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 184
- Two or more races2.3% · 148
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 64
- Black or African American0.2% · 12
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 11
Timeline
Historical Census data for Ostrowski
Ostrowski 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
#5,015
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,005
+25 bearers (+0.4%)
Per 100,000 2.37
Rank movement Down 368 places
2020
#5,159
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,552
-453 bearers (-6.5%)
Per 100,000 2.19
Rank movement Down 144 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,647 | 6,980 | 2.59 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,015 | 7,005 | 2.37 | +25 bearers (+0.4%) | Down 368 places |
| 2020 | #5,159 | 6,552 | 2.19 | -453 bearers (-6.5%) | Down 144 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 Ostrowski 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 | #5,015 | #5,159 | -2.9% |
| Count | 7,005 | 6,552 | -6.5% |
| Per 100K | 2.37 | 2.19 | -7.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Ostrowski bearers went from 7,005 to 6,552 (-6.5% change). The surname moved down 144 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,015 to #5,159.
FAQ
Ostrowski surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Ostrowski?
Name Census estimates that about 7,513 living Americans carry the surname Ostrowski. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 45,622 residents.
How common is Ostrowski?
Ostrowski ranks #5,159 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.19 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 6,552 people with the surname Ostrowski. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (7,513), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.19 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.19 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Ostrowski.
Has Ostrowski become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Ostrowski went from 7,005 recorded bearers to 6,552. That is a decrease of 453 (-6.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,015 to #5,159.
What does the Census say about the background of Ostrowski?
Among Census respondents with the surname Ostrowski, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Ostrowski in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.6% (6,133 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Ostrowski appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.6%), Hispanic (2.8%), Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Ostrowski (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 Ostrowski mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "sharp island" in Polish, likely referring to a family's place of origin. 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 Ostrowski (2.19 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 Ostrowski?
Want to know how common the surname Ostrowski is? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.