2000
#12,043
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,379
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.88
Rare Last name
Plotkin
A Russian-Jewish occupational surname derived from the Russian word "plot," meaning carpenter or woodworker.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,449 Americans carry the last name Plotkin. That puts it at #13,589 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.71 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 139,957 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Plotkin 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
2.4K
1 in 139,957
Census rank
#13,589
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,136 bearers of the surname Plotkin in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.71 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13589th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Plotkin, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.5%) and Two or More Races (2.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Plotkin
The surname Plotkin has its origins in Eastern Europe, specifically in Russia and Ukraine. It is a patronymic surname, which means it was derived from the name of a father or ancestor. The root of the name is believed to come from the Slavic word "plot," meaning "flesh" or "body."
In the early days, surnames were often descriptive, reflecting a person's physical characteristics, occupation, or place of origin. It is possible that the name Plotkin was initially given to someone who worked as a butcher, tanner, or in a similar profession related to handling flesh or animal hides.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Plotkin can be found in the Revizskie Skazki, which were census-like records kept by the Russian Empire in the 18th and 19th centuries. These records provided valuable information about the distribution and prevalence of surnames across various regions.
The Plotkin surname can also be traced back to the shtetls (small Jewish towns) of Ukraine and Belarus, where it was quite common among Jewish communities. Some notable individuals with the surname Plotkin include:
1. Yakov Plotkin (1893-1942), a Soviet mathematician and academic who made significant contributions to the field of probability theory.
2. Elizaveta Plotkina (1844-1924), a Russian writer and translator known for her works on women's rights and education.
3. Mark Plotkin (born 1955), an American ethnobotanist and environmentalist who has worked extensively with indigenous communities in the Amazon rainforest.
4. Lev Plotkin (1872-1919), a Russian revolutionary and Bolshevik activist who participated in the October Revolution of 1917.
5. Rina Plotkin (born 1931), an Israeli sculptor and artist whose works have been exhibited in various galleries and museums around the world.
While the surname Plotkin may have evolved over time, with slight variations in spelling or pronunciation, its roots can be traced back to the rich cultural heritage of Eastern European Jewish communities and the customs and traditions of the region.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Plotkin
Among Census respondents with the surname Plotkin, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.5%) and Two or More Races (2.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Plotkin 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 Plotkin surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.0% · 1,944
- Hispanic or Latino5.5% · 118
- Two or more races2.0% · 43
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 15
- Black or African American0.6% · 12
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Plotkin
Plotkin 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
#13,241
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,306
-73 bearers (-3.1%)
Per 100,000 0.78
Rank movement Down 1,198 places
2020
#13,589
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,136
-170 bearers (-7.4%)
Per 100,000 0.71
Rank movement Down 348 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,043 | 2,379 | 0.88 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,241 | 2,306 | 0.78 | -73 bearers (-3.1%) | Down 1,198 places |
| 2020 | #13,589 | 2,136 | 0.71 | -170 bearers (-7.4%) | Down 348 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 Plotkin 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 | #13,241 | #13,589 | -2.6% |
| Count | 2,306 | 2,136 | -7.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.78 | 0.71 | -8.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Plotkin bearers went from 2,306 to 2,136 (-7.4% change). The surname moved down 348 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,241 to #13,589.
FAQ
Plotkin surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Plotkin?
Name Census estimates that about 2,449 living Americans carry the surname Plotkin. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 139,957 residents.
How common is Plotkin?
Plotkin ranks #13,589 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.71 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,136 people with the surname Plotkin. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,449), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.71 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.71 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Plotkin.
Has Plotkin become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Plotkin went from 2,306 recorded bearers to 2,136. That is a decrease of 170 (-7.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #13,241 to #13,589.
What does the Census say about the background of Plotkin?
Among Census respondents with the surname Plotkin, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.5%) and Two or More Races (2.0%). 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 Plotkin in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.0% (1,944 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Plotkin appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.0%), Hispanic (5.5%), Two or More Races (2.0%). 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 Plotkin (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 Plotkin mean?
A Russian-Jewish occupational surname derived from the Russian word "plot," meaning carpenter or woodworker. 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 Plotkin (0.71 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 common is the surname Plotkin?
If you just want to know how many people have the last name Plotkin, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.