2010
#130,610
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 130
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Plebanski
Originating from Polish nobility or village administrator.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 139 Americans carry the last name Plebanski. That puts it at #141,309 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,465,859 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Plebanski 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
139
1 in 2,465,859
Census rank
#141,309
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
121
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 121 bearers of the surname Plebanski in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 141309th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Plebanski, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (10.7%) and Two or More Races (1.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Plebanski
The surname Plebanski is of Polish origin, derived from the word "pleb" meaning "parish priest" or "rector." It likely originated in the late medieval period, around the 13th or 14th century, when surnames were becoming more common among the Polish nobility and gentry.
The name Plebanski was initially concentrated in the regions of Lesser Poland, Mazovia, and Silesia, where many parish priests and rectors served in local churches and parishes. The earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in church records and parish registers from these areas.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Jan Plebanski, a parish priest in the village of Krakow-Podgórze, who lived in the late 15th century. Another notable figure was Marcin Plebanski, a rector at the Church of St. Mary in Krakow, who lived in the early 16th century and was renowned for his scholarship and contributions to the city's cultural life.
In the 17th century, the Plebanski family gained prominence in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, with several members holding important positions in the church and local administration. Jakub Plebanski, born in 1624, was a renowned theologian and author who served as a canon in the Wawel Cathedral in Krakow.
During the 18th century, the name spread to other parts of Poland, including the regions of Greater Poland and Pomerania. One notable bearer was Tomasz Plebanski, born in 1732, who was a prominent landowner and philanthropist in the town of Gniezno.
As the Plebanski surname grew more widespread, it also began to appear in various spelling variations, such as Plebansky, Plebański, and Plebańczyk, reflecting regional dialects and linguistic variations within Poland.
Throughout history, several individuals with the surname Plebanski have made significant contributions to various fields, including Józef Plebanski (1831-1897), a Polish mathematician and physicist, and Jerzy Plebanski (1928-2005), a renowned theoretical physicist known for his work in general relativity and quantum gravity.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Plebanski
Among Census respondents with the surname Plebanski, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (10.7%) and Two or More Races (1.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Plebanski 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 Plebanski surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.6% · 106
- Hispanic or Latino10.7% · 13
- Two or more races1.7% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Plebanski
Plebanski appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#141,309
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 121
-9 bearers (-6.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 10,699 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #130,610 | 130 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #141,309 | 121 | 0.04 | -9 bearers (-6.9%) | Down 10,699 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 Plebanski 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 | #130,610 | #141,309 | -8.2% |
| Count | 130 | 121 | -6.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | 1.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Plebanski bearers went from 130 to 121 (-6.9% change). The surname moved down 10,699 positions in the national ranking, going from #130,610 to #141,309.
FAQ
Plebanski surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Plebanski?
Name Census estimates that about 139 living Americans carry the surname Plebanski. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,465,859 residents.
How common is Plebanski?
Plebanski ranks #141,309 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 121 people with the surname Plebanski. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (139), 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 Plebanski.
Has Plebanski become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Plebanski went from 130 recorded bearers to 121. That is a decrease of 9 (-6.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #130,610 to #141,309.
What does the Census say about the background of Plebanski?
Among Census respondents with the surname Plebanski, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (10.7%) and Two or More Races (1.7%). 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 Plebanski in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.6% (106 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Plebanski appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.6%), Hispanic (10.7%), Two or More Races (1.7%). 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 Plebanski (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 Plebanski mean?
Originating from Polish nobility or village administrator. 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 Plebanski (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 people have the last name Plebanski?
If you just want to know how many people have the last name Plebanski, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.