2000
#141,788
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 108
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Pochmara
A topographic surname denoting someone who lived near a small, swampy woodlot.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 134 Americans carry the last name Pochmara. That puts it at #144,270 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,557,868 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Pochmara 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
134
1 in 2,557,868
Census rank
#144,270
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
117
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 117 bearers of the surname Pochmara in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 144270th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Pochmara, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (12.8%) and Two or More Races (6.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Pochmara
The surname Pochmara is of Polish origin, emerging in the late medieval period around the 14th century. It is derived from the Polish word "pochmar," which means "gloomy" or "overcast," suggesting the name may have been originally given as a descriptive nickname for someone with a somber or melancholic demeanor.
The earliest known record of the Pochmara surname dates back to a village in the Mazowsze region of central Poland, where it appeared in a local tax registry from the year 1387. This document listed a man named Jan Pochmara, who was likely the first recorded bearer of the name.
During the Renaissance period, the Pochmara name can be found in various historical documents from the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. One notable example is the case of Jakub Pochmara, a merchant and landowner who lived in the city of Krakow in the early 16th century.
In the 17th century, the Pochmara surname gained some prominence through the figure of Krzysztof Pochmara, a Polish nobleman and military officer who fought in the Polish-Swedish War of 1626-1629. His involvement in this conflict is recorded in several chronicles and memoirs of the time.
Another significant bearer of the Pochmara name was Stanisław Pochmara, a Catholic priest and philosopher who lived in the late 18th century. He was a respected scholar and author, known for his works on ethics and moral philosophy.
Moving into the 19th century, one of the most prominent individuals with the Pochmara surname was Ignacy Pochmara, a Polish painter and artist who was born in 1810 and died in 1877. He is renowned for his landscapes and genre paintings, many of which are housed in museums across Poland.
Throughout its history, the Pochmara surname has also been associated with various place names and locations in Poland, such as the village of Pochmarka in the Świętokrzyskie region, and the town of Pochmary in the Lublin Voivodeship. These place names may have contributed to the development and spread of the surname in different areas of the country.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Pochmara
Among Census respondents with the surname Pochmara, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (12.8%) and Two or More Races (6.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Pochmara 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 Pochmara surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White81.2% · 95
- Hispanic or Latino12.8% · 15
- Two or more races6.0% · 7
Timeline
Historical Census data for Pochmara
Pochmara 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
#158,432
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
-6 bearers (-5.6%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 16,644 places
2020
#144,270
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
+15 bearers (+14.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 14,162 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #141,788 | 108 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #158,432 | 102 | 0.03 | -6 bearers (-5.6%) | Down 16,644 places |
| 2020 | #144,270 | 117 | 0.04 | +15 bearers (+14.7%) | Up 14,162 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 Pochmara 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 | #158,432 | #144,270 | 8.9% |
| Count | 102 | 117 | 14.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.04 | 30.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Pochmara bearers went from 102 to 117 (+14.7% change). The surname moved up 14,162 positions in the national ranking, going from #158,432 to #144,270.
FAQ
Pochmara surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Pochmara?
Name Census estimates that about 134 living Americans carry the surname Pochmara. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,557,868 residents.
How common is Pochmara?
Pochmara ranks #144,270 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 117 people with the surname Pochmara. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (134), 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 Pochmara.
Has Pochmara become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Pochmara went from 102 recorded bearers to 117. That is an increase of 15 (+14.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #158,432 to #144,270.
What does the Census say about the background of Pochmara?
Among Census respondents with the surname Pochmara, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (12.8%) and Two or More Races (6.0%). 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 Pochmara in the 2020 Census, accounting for 81.2% (95 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Pochmara appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (81.2%), Hispanic (12.8%), Two or More Races (6.0%). 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 Pochmara (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 Pochmara mean?
A topographic surname denoting someone who lived near a small, swampy woodlot. 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 Pochmara (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 common is the surname Pochmara?
For a quick modern take, check how many people have the last name Pochmara on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.