2000
#127,948
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 123
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Podulka
A locational surname derived from a place name, likely from Ukraine or Eastern Europe.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 120 Americans carry the last name Podulka. That puts it at #152,989 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,856,286 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Podulka 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
120
1 in 2,856,286
Census rank
#152,989
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
105
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 105 bearers of the surname Podulka in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 152989th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Podulka, the largest self-reported group is White at 99.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Podulka
The surname Podulka has its origins in Eastern Europe, specifically in the regions of modern-day Ukraine and western Russia. The name can be traced back to the 16th century and is thought to have derived from the Old Slavic word "podul," which referred to a low-lying area or floodplain near a river.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Podulka can be found in a census record from the town of Chernigov, located in present-day Ukraine, dating back to the late 1500s. This record mentions a family with the surname Podulka residing in the area.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the name Podulka appeared in various historical documents and records from the regions of Volyn and Podolia, which were part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth at the time. These records often referred to individuals with the surname Podulka as landowners or peasants living in rural areas near rivers or streams.
In the 19th century, a notable figure bearing the surname Podulka was Vasyl Podulka, a Ukrainian writer and poet born in 1815 in the village of Velyka Bahachka, which was part of the Russian Empire at the time. Vasyl Podulka is known for his contributions to Ukrainian literature and his efforts in preserving Ukrainian cultural traditions.
Another individual of historical significance with the surname Podulka was Hryhoriy Podulka, a Ukrainian military leader and commander during the Ukrainian War of Independence (1917-1921). Hryhoriy Podulka, born in 1890 in the village of Mala Mochulka, played a significant role in the fight for Ukrainian independence against the Bolshevik forces.
In the early 20th century, the surname Podulka was also found in records from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, particularly in the regions of Galicia and Bukovina, which had significant Ukrainian populations. One notable individual from this time was Mykhailo Podulka, a Ukrainian Greek Catholic priest and activist born in 1875 in the village of Zhuravtsi, Galicia.
While the surname Podulka has its roots in Eastern Europe, it has spread to other parts of the world due to emigration and diaspora communities. However, its origins can be traced back to the regions of modern-day Ukraine and western Russia, where it was closely associated with rural areas and settlements near rivers or floodplains.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Podulka
Among Census respondents with the surname Podulka, the largest self-reported group is White at 99.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Podulka 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 Podulka surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White99.0% · 104
- Hispanic or Latino1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Podulka
Podulka 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
#148,347
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
-12 bearers (-9.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 20,399 places
2020
#152,989
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 105
-6 bearers (-5.4%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 4,642 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #127,948 | 123 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #148,347 | 111 | 0.04 | -12 bearers (-9.8%) | Down 20,399 places |
| 2020 | #152,989 | 105 | 0.04 | -6 bearers (-5.4%) | Down 4,642 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 Podulka 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 | #148,347 | #152,989 | -3.1% |
| Count | 111 | 105 | -5.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -12.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Podulka bearers went from 111 to 105 (-5.4% change). The surname moved down 4,642 positions in the national ranking, going from #148,347 to #152,989.
FAQ
Podulka surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Podulka?
Name Census estimates that about 120 living Americans carry the surname Podulka. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,856,286 residents.
How common is Podulka?
Podulka ranks #152,989 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 105 people with the surname Podulka. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (120), 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 Podulka.
Has Podulka become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Podulka went from 111 recorded bearers to 105. That is a decrease of 6 (-5.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #148,347 to #152,989.
What does the Census say about the background of Podulka?
Among Census respondents with the surname Podulka, the largest self-reported group is White at 99.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.0%). 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 Podulka in the 2020 Census, accounting for 99.0% (104 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Podulka appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (99.0%), Hispanic (1.0%). 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 Podulka (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 Podulka mean?
A locational surname derived from a place name, likely from Ukraine or Eastern Europe. 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 Podulka (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 share the surname Podulka?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.