2000
#11,722
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,450
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.91
Rare Last name
Paik
A Korean surname derived from the Chinese character 白, meaning "white," often referring to someone with pale skin.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,133 Americans carry the last name Paik. That puts it at #11,088 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.91 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 109,401 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Paik 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
3.1K
1 in 109,401
Census rank
#11,088
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,732 bearers of the surname Paik in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.91 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11088th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Paik, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 89.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.8%) and White (4.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Paik
The surname PAIK is believed to have originated in Korea, with its earliest known records dating back to the Goryeo dynasty (918-1392 AD). It is thought to derive from the Korean word "paek," meaning "bright" or "shining," which may have been used to describe someone with a bright or radiant appearance.
During the Joseon dynasty (1392-1897 AD), the PAIK surname was particularly prevalent in the Gyeongsang and Jeolla regions of Korea. It was often associated with scholars, officials, and members of the Korean aristocracy. One notable figure from this period was Paik In-gyu (1639-1707), a prominent Neo-Confucian scholar and writer who served as a high-ranking government official.
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, as Korean immigration to other parts of the world began to increase, the PAIK surname became more widely dispersed. One of the earliest known Korean immigrants to the United States was Paik Hong-yong (1880-1969), who arrived in Hawaii in 1904 and later settled in California, where he worked as a farmer and became involved in the Korean independence movement.
Another prominent individual with the PAIK surname was Paik Nam-june (1932-2006), a pioneering Korean-American artist widely regarded as the founder of video art. Paik's innovative use of technology and multimedia installations made him a highly influential figure in the art world, and he is credited with coining the term "electronic superhighway" to describe the global network of communication and information exchange.
In the field of academia, Paik Nak-chung (born 1927) is a renowned Korean scholar, literary critic, and translator who has made significant contributions to the study of Korean literature and culture. He has been a vocal advocate for democracy and human rights in South Korea.
Other notable individuals with the PAIK surname include Paik Young-sam (1859-1935), a Korean educator and independence activist who played a pivotal role in the establishment of modern education in Korea, and Paik Sun-yup (1879-1965), a Korean military leader and independence activist who served as the first Prime Minister of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Paik
Among Census respondents with the surname Paik, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 89.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.8%) and White (4.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Paik 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 Paik surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander89.2% · 2,437
- Two or more races4.8% · 130
- White4.4% · 121
- Hispanic or Latino1.2% · 34
- Black or African American0.3% · 9
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Paik
Paik 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
#11,371
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,774
+324 bearers (+13.2%)
Per 100,000 0.94
Rank movement Up 351 places
2020
#11,088
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,732
-42 bearers (-1.5%)
Per 100,000 0.91
Rank movement Up 283 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,722 | 2,450 | 0.91 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,371 | 2,774 | 0.94 | +324 bearers (+13.2%) | Up 351 places |
| 2020 | #11,088 | 2,732 | 0.91 | -42 bearers (-1.5%) | Up 283 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 Paik 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 | #11,371 | #11,088 | 2.5% |
| Count | 2,774 | 2,732 | -1.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.94 | 0.91 | -2.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Paik bearers went from 2,774 to 2,732 (-1.5% change). The surname moved up 283 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,371 to #11,088.
FAQ
Paik surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Paik?
Name Census estimates that about 3,133 living Americans carry the surname Paik. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 109,401 residents.
How common is Paik?
Paik ranks #11,088 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.91 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,732 people with the surname Paik. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,133), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.91 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.91 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Paik.
Has Paik become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Paik went from 2,774 recorded bearers to 2,732. That is a decrease of 42 (-1.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #11,371 to #11,088.
What does the Census say about the background of Paik?
Among Census respondents with the surname Paik, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 89.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.8%) and White (4.4%). 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?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest self-reported group for the surname Paik in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.2% (2,437 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Paik appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (89.2%), Two or More Races (4.8%), White (4.4%). 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 Paik (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 Paik mean?
A Korean surname derived from the Chinese character 白, meaning "white," often referring to someone with pale skin. 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 Paik (0.91 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 last name Paik?
For a quick modern take, check how many people are called Paik on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.