2000
#124,872
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 127
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Plewinski
A Polish surname derived from a placename related to fishing or living near a pond.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 119 Americans carry the last name Plewinski. That puts it at #153,590 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,880,289 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Plewinski 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
119
1 in 2,880,289
Census rank
#153,590
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
104
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 104 bearers of the surname Plewinski in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 153590th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Plewinski, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Plewinski
The surname Plewinski originated in Poland, with its earliest recorded examples dating back to the late 16th century. It is believed to be derived from the Polish word "plew," which means "weed" or "tare," suggesting that the name may have initially referred to a person who worked with or lived near weeds or weedy areas. Alternatively, some sources suggest that the name could be a variation of the Polish surname "Plewinski," which is derived from the place name "Plawno" or "Plewno," small villages in central Poland.
In the 17th and 18th centuries, the Plewinski surname appeared in various historical records and documents from the region of Greater Poland (Wielkopolska) and Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship (Kujawsko-Pomorskie). One notable historical figure bearing this name was Jan Plewinski (1630-1703), a Polish nobleman and military commander who fought in the Polish-Swedish wars of the mid-17th century.
As the Plewinski family expanded and migrated within Poland and beyond, variations in spelling emerged, such as Plewinsky, Plevinski, and Plevinsky. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, many Polish immigrants carrying the Plewinski surname settled in the United States, particularly in the Midwestern states like Illinois, Wisconsin, and Michigan.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Plewinski name in the United States can be found in the 1880 U.S. Census, which lists a Teodor Plewinski, born in Poland around 1845. Another notable individual with this surname was Ignacy Plewinski (1858-1931), a Polish-American architect who designed several prominent buildings in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Other notable individuals with the Plewinski surname include Bronislaw Plewinski (1892-1968), a Polish mathematician and university professor; Walerian Plewinski (1817-1883), a Polish painter and illustrator; and Stanislaw Plewinski (1882-1942), a Polish Catholic priest and Resistance member during World War II.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Plewinski
Among Census respondents with the surname Plewinski, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Plewinski 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 Plewinski surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.3% · 95
- Hispanic or Latino3.8% · 4
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.9% · 3
- Two or more races1.9% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Plewinski
Plewinski 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
#127,494
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 134
+7 bearers (+5.5%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Down 2,622 places
2020
#153,590
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 104
-30 bearers (-22.4%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 26,096 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #124,872 | 127 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #127,494 | 134 | 0.05 | +7 bearers (+5.5%) | Down 2,622 places |
| 2020 | #153,590 | 104 | 0.03 | -30 bearers (-22.4%) | Down 26,096 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 Plewinski 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 | #127,494 | #153,590 | -20.5% |
| Count | 134 | 104 | -22.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.03 | -30.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Plewinski bearers went from 134 to 104 (-22.4% change). The surname moved down 26,096 positions in the national ranking, going from #127,494 to #153,590.
FAQ
Plewinski surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Plewinski?
Name Census estimates that about 119 living Americans carry the surname Plewinski. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,880,289 residents.
How common is Plewinski?
Plewinski ranks #153,590 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 104 people with the surname Plewinski. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (119), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Plewinski.
Has Plewinski become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Plewinski went from 134 recorded bearers to 104. That is a decrease of 30 (-22.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #127,494 to #153,590.
What does the Census say about the background of Plewinski?
Among Census respondents with the surname Plewinski, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.9%). 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 Plewinski in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.3% (95 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Plewinski appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.3%), Hispanic (3.8%), Asian/Pacific Islander (2.9%). 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 Plewinski (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 Plewinski mean?
A Polish surname derived from a placename related to fishing or living near a pond. 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 Plewinski (0.03 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 Plewinski?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.