2000
#33,690
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 638
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.24
Very Rare Last name
Piechowski
A Polish surname derived from the word "piechota" meaning infantry or foot soldier.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 736 Americans carry the last name Piechowski. That puts it at #37,317 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.21 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 465,699 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Piechowski 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
736
1 in 465,699
Census rank
#37,317
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
642
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 642 bearers of the surname Piechowski in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.21 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 37317th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Piechowski, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Piechowski
The surname Piechowski has Polish origins, with its roots tracing back to the medieval era. It is believed to have originated from the Polish word "piechur," which referred to a foot soldier or infantryman. This suggests that the name may have been initially bestowed upon individuals or families with ties to military service or those who worked as foot soldiers.
The earliest recorded instances of the Piechowski surname can be found in various historical documents and records from the 15th and 16th centuries in Poland. One notable example is the appearance of the name in the Polish Armorial Corpus, a collection of armorial bearings and coats of arms, dating back to the late 16th century.
During the Renaissance period, the Piechowski name gained prominence in several regions of Poland, particularly in the areas around Krakow, Poznan, and Warsaw. The name was also associated with various noble families and landowners, indicating that some individuals bearing this surname held positions of social and economic significance.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the Piechowski surname was Jan Piechowski, a notable military commander who served under King Sigismund III Vasa in the early 17th century. His exploits in the Polish-Swedish Wars of the 1620s earned him recognition and contributed to the prestige of the Piechowski name.
In the 18th century, Maciej Piechowski, a renowned Polish poet and philosopher, gained recognition for his literary works and philosophical writings. Born in 1720, he made significant contributions to the intellectual discourse of his time and helped elevate the reputation of the Piechowski surname in scholarly circles.
Another noteworthy figure was Stanislaw Piechowski, a prominent 19th-century architect who designed several iconic buildings and structures in Warsaw and other Polish cities. His architectural legacy, which includes the renowned Warsaw Philharmonic, has left an indelible mark on the urban landscape of Poland.
Towards the end of the 19th century, Karolina Piechowska emerged as a pioneering educator and champion of women's rights in Poland. Her efforts to establish educational institutions for girls and promote gender equality earned her a place in Polish history as a trailblazer in the field of education and social reform.
In the 20th century, Jerzy Piechowski gained recognition as a talented painter and sculptor, known for his innovative approach to art and his unique style that blended traditional Polish motifs with modern artistic techniques. His works have been exhibited in prestigious galleries and museums across Poland and internationally.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Piechowski
Among Census respondents with the surname Piechowski, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Piechowski 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 Piechowski surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.4% · 593
- Two or more races3.4% · 22
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 16
- Black or African American0.8% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 4
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Piechowski
Piechowski 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
#34,314
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 661
+23 bearers (+3.6%)
Per 100,000 0.22
Rank movement Down 624 places
2020
#37,317
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 642
-19 bearers (-2.9%)
Per 100,000 0.21
Rank movement Down 3,003 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #33,690 | 638 | 0.24 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #34,314 | 661 | 0.22 | +23 bearers (+3.6%) | Down 624 places |
| 2020 | #37,317 | 642 | 0.21 | -19 bearers (-2.9%) | Down 3,003 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 Piechowski 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 | #34,314 | #37,317 | -8.8% |
| Count | 661 | 642 | -2.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.22 | 0.21 | -2.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Piechowski bearers went from 661 to 642 (-2.9% change). The surname moved down 3,003 positions in the national ranking, going from #34,314 to #37,317.
FAQ
Piechowski surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Piechowski?
Name Census estimates that about 736 living Americans carry the surname Piechowski. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 465,699 residents.
How common is Piechowski?
Piechowski ranks #37,317 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.21 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 642 people with the surname Piechowski. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (736), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.21 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.21 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 Piechowski.
Has Piechowski become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Piechowski went from 661 recorded bearers to 642. That is a decrease of 19 (-2.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #34,314 to #37,317.
What does the Census say about the background of Piechowski?
Among Census respondents with the surname Piechowski, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (2.5%). 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 Piechowski in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.4% (593 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Piechowski appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.4%), Two or More Races (3.4%), Hispanic (2.5%). 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 Piechowski (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 Piechowski mean?
A Polish surname derived from the word "piechota" meaning infantry or foot soldier. 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 Piechowski (0.21 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 Piechowski?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.