2000
#136,783
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Plecki
A Polish surname derived from a diminutive form of the name Piotr (Peter).
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 125 Americans carry the last name Plecki. That puts it at #150,205 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,742,035 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Plecki 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
125
1 in 2,742,035
Census rank
#150,205
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
109
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 109 bearers of the surname Plecki in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 150205th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Plecki, the largest self-reported group is White at 100.0%.
Origin
Meaning and origin of Plecki
The surname PLECKI originated in Poland, with its earliest recorded use dating back to the 12th century. It is derived from the Polish word "plecki," meaning "back" or "shoulder." This suggests that the name may have initially been a descriptive nickname or occupation name for someone with a prominent back or shoulders, or possibly for someone who carried loads on their back or shoulders.
The PLECKI name can be traced back to the Masovian region of central Poland, particularly in the areas around the town of Płock. Some historical records indicate that the name was also present in the nearby regions of Kujawy and Mazury.
In the 14th century, a variant spelling of the name, "Pletzki," appeared in a document from the town of Chełmno, which was then part of the Teutonic Knights' State of the Teutonic Order. This suggests that the name had spread beyond its initial region of origin by that time.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the PLECKI surname was Jan Plecki, who lived in the town of Bydgoszcz in the mid-15th century. Another early bearer of the name was Maciej Plecki, a landowner from the village of Czerniewo near Płock, mentioned in records from the late 16th century.
In the 17th century, the PLECKI name was also found in the Duchy of Prussia, which was then a part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. A notable figure from this era was Paweł Plecki (1610-1678), a Catholic priest and theologian who served as a canon in the city of Frombork.
During the 18th century, the PLECKI surname spread further across the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, with bearers of the name appearing in various regions, including Greater Poland, Silesia, and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. One notable individual from this period was Kazimierz Plecki (1714-1789), a landowner and military officer who fought in the Polish-Russian War of 1792.
Throughout the 19th century, the PLECKI name continued to be present in various parts of Poland, as well as in areas that were formerly part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth but had become part of the Russian Empire or the Kingdom of Prussia. Some notable individuals from this era include Michał Plecki (1815-1887), a Polish painter and illustrator, and Józef Plecki (1862-1928), a Polish engineer and inventor.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Plecki
Among Census respondents with the surname Plecki, the largest self-reported group is White at 100.0%.
The bar chart below shows how Plecki 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 Plecki surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White100.0% · 109
Timeline
Historical Census data for Plecki
Plecki 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
#146,201
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
+0 bearers (+0.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 9,418 places
2020
#150,205
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 109
-4 bearers (-3.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 4,004 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #136,783 | 113 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #146,201 | 113 | 0.04 | +0 bearers (+0.0%) | Down 9,418 places |
| 2020 | #150,205 | 109 | 0.04 | -4 bearers (-3.5%) | Down 4,004 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 Plecki 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 | #146,201 | #150,205 | -2.7% |
| Count | 113 | 109 | -3.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -8.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Plecki bearers went from 113 to 109 (-3.5% change). The surname moved down 4,004 positions in the national ranking, going from #146,201 to #150,205.
FAQ
Plecki surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Plecki?
Name Census estimates that about 125 living Americans carry the surname Plecki. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,742,035 residents.
How common is Plecki?
Plecki ranks #150,205 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 109 people with the surname Plecki. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (125), 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 Plecki.
Has Plecki become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Plecki went from 113 recorded bearers to 109. That is a decrease of 4 (-3.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #146,201 to #150,205.
What does the Census say about the background of Plecki?
Among Census respondents with the surname Plecki, the largest self-reported group is White at 100.0%. 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 Plecki in the 2020 Census, accounting for 100.0% (109 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Plecki appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (100.0%). 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 Plecki (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 Plecki mean?
A Polish surname derived from a diminutive form of the name Piotr (Peter). 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 Plecki (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 Plecki?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.