2000
#143,847
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 106
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Pleska
An occupational surname derived from the Polish word "plesać" meaning "to dance."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 126 Americans carry the last name Pleska. That puts it at #149,446 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,720,273 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Pleska 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
126
1 in 2,720,273
Census rank
#149,446
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
110
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 110 bearers of the surname Pleska in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 149446th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Pleska, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.5%) and Two or More Races (3.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Pleska
The surname Pleska is of Slavic origin, specifically from the Czech Republic and surrounding regions. It likely emerged in the late medieval period, around the 13th or 14th century. The name is derived from the Old Czech word "pleskati," meaning "to clap" or "to slap." This suggests that the name may have been initially given as a nickname or occupational name to someone who worked as a launderer or cloth beater.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Pleska can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus et Epistolaris Regni Bohemiae, a collection of historical documents from the Kingdom of Bohemia, dated back to the 14th century. In these records, a man named Jaromir Pleska is mentioned as a landowner in the village of Plzeň.
In the 16th century, a notable figure named Jan Pleska (1520-1592) was a prominent Czech humanist scholar and writer. He authored several works on history, philosophy, and theology, and served as a rector at the University of Prague.
During the 17th century, the name Pleska appeared in various church records and land registries throughout Bohemia and Moravia. A notable example is Václav Pleska (1628-1699), a Catholic priest and theologian who served as the Dean of the Cathedral of St. Vitus in Prague.
In the 19th century, a family of Czech immigrants bearing the surname Pleska settled in the United States. One of their descendants, Antonín Pleska (1876-1957), became a renowned botanist and plant collector, known for his extensive expeditions to South America and his contributions to the study of the flora of that region.
Another notable figure with the surname Pleska was Ludvík Pleska (1885-1945), a Czech painter and illustrator whose works were heavily influenced by the Art Nouveau and Symbolist movements. He was especially known for his illustrations of fairy tales and legends.
While the surname Pleska has its roots in the Czech lands, it has since spread to other parts of the world, including Slovakia, Poland, and the United States, through migration and cultural exchange. However, its origins can be traced back to the Slavic regions of Central Europe, where it emerged as a distinctive surname with a rich historical background.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Pleska
Among Census respondents with the surname Pleska, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.5%) and Two or More Races (3.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Pleska 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 Pleska surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.2% · 97
- Hispanic or Latino5.5% · 6
- Two or more races3.6% · 4
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Pleska
Pleska 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
#143,149
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 116
+10 bearers (+9.4%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 698 places
2020
#149,446
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
-6 bearers (-5.2%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 6,297 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #143,847 | 106 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #143,149 | 116 | 0.04 | +10 bearers (+9.4%) | Up 698 places |
| 2020 | #149,446 | 110 | 0.04 | -6 bearers (-5.2%) | Down 6,297 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 Pleska 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 | #143,149 | #149,446 | -4.4% |
| Count | 116 | 110 | -5.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -8.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Pleska bearers went from 116 to 110 (-5.2% change). The surname moved down 6,297 positions in the national ranking, going from #143,149 to #149,446.
FAQ
Pleska surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Pleska?
Name Census estimates that about 126 living Americans carry the surname Pleska. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,720,273 residents.
How common is Pleska?
Pleska ranks #149,446 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 110 people with the surname Pleska. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (126), 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 Pleska.
Has Pleska become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Pleska went from 116 recorded bearers to 110. That is a decrease of 6 (-5.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #143,149 to #149,446.
What does the Census say about the background of Pleska?
Among Census respondents with the surname Pleska, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.5%) and Two or More Races (3.6%). 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 Pleska in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.2% (97 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Pleska appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.2%), Hispanic (5.5%), Two or More Races (3.6%). 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 Pleska (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 Pleska mean?
An occupational surname derived from the Polish word "plesać" meaning "to dance." 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 Pleska (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 surname Pleska?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.