2000
#3,607
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,058
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.36
Rare Last name
Pollack
A Polish surname derived from the Polish word for a person from Poland or an ethnic Pole.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 9,548 Americans carry the last name Pollack. That puts it at #4,135 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.79 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 35,898 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Pollack 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Pollack with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
9.5K
1 in 35,898
Census rank
#4,135
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
8.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 8,326 bearers of the surname Pollack in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.79 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4135th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Pollack, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.6%) and Two or More Races (2.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Pollack
The surname Pollack is of Polish origin, derived from the Polish word "Polak," meaning a person of Polish descent or nationality. It dates back to the Middle Ages and was initially used as an ethnic identifier.
The earliest recorded instances of the name Pollack can be found in various historical documents from the 13th and 14th centuries in Poland. One notable reference is in the "Księga Henrykowska" (Book of Henryków), a medieval manuscript dating back to the late 13th century, which lists several individuals with the surname Pollack.
In the 15th century, the name Pollack began to appear in various regions of Central and Eastern Europe, including parts of modern-day Germany, Czech Republic, and Hungary, likely due to migration and trade routes. The spelling variations at that time included Polack, Pollak, and Pollacek.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Pollack was Jan Pollack, a Polish merchant and trader who lived in the city of Krakow in the late 15th century. Another notable figure was Mikołaj Pollack, a Polish Renaissance architect and engineer who designed several prominent buildings in Krakow and other cities in the 16th century.
In the 17th century, the name Pollack began to appear in various records in England, likely due to immigration from continental Europe. One of the earliest recorded individuals with this surname in England was Thomas Pollack, who was born in London in 1632.
Another notable figure was Johann Pollack, an Austrian architect and engineer who lived from 1772 to 1838. He is best known for his work on the construction of the Semmering Railway, one of the first mountain railways in Europe.
In the 19th century, the name Pollack became more widespread in the United States and other parts of the world, primarily due to immigration from Europe. One of the most famous individuals with this surname was Jackson Pollack, the renowned American painter and a leading figure in the abstract expressionist movement, who lived from 1912 to 1956.
Overall, the surname Pollack has a rich history and has been present in various regions of Europe and beyond for several centuries, reflecting the migration patterns and cultural exchanges that shaped the modern world.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Pollack
Among Census respondents with the surname Pollack, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.6%) and Two or More Races (2.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Pollack 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 Pollack surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.3% · 7,522
- Hispanic or Latino4.6% · 387
- Two or more races2.1% · 174
- Black or African American1.8% · 151
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 79
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 13
Timeline
Historical Census data for Pollack
Pollack 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
#3,959
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,977
-81 bearers (-0.9%)
Per 100,000 3.04
Rank movement Down 352 places
2020
#4,135
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,326
-651 bearers (-7.3%)
Per 100,000 2.79
Rank movement Down 176 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,607 | 9,058 | 3.36 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,959 | 8,977 | 3.04 | -81 bearers (-0.9%) | Down 352 places |
| 2020 | #4,135 | 8,326 | 2.79 | -651 bearers (-7.3%) | Down 176 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 Pollack 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 | #3,959 | #4,135 | -4.4% |
| Count | 8,977 | 8,326 | -7.3% |
| Per 100K | 3.04 | 2.79 | -8.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Pollack bearers went from 8,977 to 8,326 (-7.3% change). The surname moved down 176 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,959 to #4,135.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Pollack
FAQ
Pollack surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Pollack?
Name Census estimates that about 9,548 living Americans carry the surname Pollack. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 35,898 residents.
How common is Pollack?
Pollack ranks #4,135 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.79 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 8,326 people with the surname Pollack. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (9,548), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.79 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.79 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Pollack.
Has Pollack become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Pollack went from 8,977 recorded bearers to 8,326. That is a decrease of 651 (-7.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,959 to #4,135.
What does the Census say about the background of Pollack?
Among Census respondents with the surname Pollack, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.6%) and Two or More Races (2.1%). 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 Pollack in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.3% (7,522 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Pollack appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.3%), Hispanic (4.6%), Two or More Races (2.1%). 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 Pollack (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 Pollack mean?
A Polish surname derived from the Polish word for a person from Poland or an ethnic Pole. 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 Pollack (2.79 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 Pollack?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.