2010
#154,907
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 105
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Polovich
A surname derived from the Slavic root "pol", meaning field or land.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 135 Americans carry the last name Polovich. That puts it at #143,511 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,538,921 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Polovich 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
135
1 in 2,538,921
Census rank
#143,511
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
118
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 118 bearers of the surname Polovich in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 143511th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Polovich, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.1%) and Hispanic (4.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Polovich
The surname POLOVICH originated in the Slavic region of Eastern Europe, specifically in modern-day Poland and parts of western Ukraine. It is believed to have emerged sometime in the 13th or 14th century, during the period when surnames were becoming more widespread among the general population.
POLOVICH is a patronymic surname, meaning it was derived from the given name of an ancestor. In this case, it likely stems from the Polish personal name Pol or Polo, which itself has roots in the Slavic word "pole" meaning "field" or "plain." This suggests that the original bearer of the surname may have been someone who lived or worked in an open field or rural area.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the POLOVICH surname can be found in a document from the city of Krakow, dated to the late 14th century. This document mentions a certain "Jacobus Polovich," who was likely a merchant or tradesman residing in the city at the time.
In the 16th century, the POLOVICH name appeared in various records and registries throughout the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, indicating that families with this surname had spread across the region. One notable individual from this era was Jan POLOVICH (c. 1520-1578), a prominent landowner and military commander who fought in several campaigns against the Crimean Tatars.
As the centuries passed, the POLOVICH surname continued to be found throughout Poland and the surrounding areas. In the 18th century, a variant spelling, "POLEWICZ," emerged in some regions, but the original POLOVICH form remained dominant.
One of the most notable individuals with the POLOVICH surname was Ignacy POLOVICH (1786-1855), a Polish general who served in the Napoleonic Wars and later became a prominent military historian and writer. Another notable figure was Wladyslaw POLOVICH (1880-1942), a Polish mathematician and logician who made significant contributions to the field of set theory.
In the 20th century, the POLOVICH surname gained recognition outside of its traditional Eastern European homeland. Aleksander POLOVICH (1903-1983), a Polish-born artist and sculptor, gained renown for his works in the United States, where he emigrated in the 1920s.
While the POLOVICH surname may have faded in prominence in recent decades, its long and storied history in Eastern Europe remains a testament to the rich cultural heritage of the region and the enduring legacy of its naming traditions.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Polovich
Among Census respondents with the surname Polovich, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.1%) and Hispanic (4.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Polovich 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 Polovich surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White86.4% · 102
- Two or more races5.1% · 6
- Hispanic or Latino4.2% · 5
- Black or African American1.7% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.7% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Polovich
Polovich appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#143,511
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 118
+13 bearers (+12.4%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 11,396 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #154,907 | 105 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #143,511 | 118 | 0.04 | +13 bearers (+12.4%) | Up 11,396 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 Polovich 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 | #154,907 | #143,511 | 7.4% |
| Count | 105 | 118 | 12.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -1.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Polovich bearers went from 105 to 118 (+12.4% change). The surname moved up 11,396 positions in the national ranking, going from #154,907 to #143,511.
FAQ
Polovich surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Polovich?
Name Census estimates that about 135 living Americans carry the surname Polovich. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,538,921 residents.
How common is Polovich?
Polovich ranks #143,511 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 118 people with the surname Polovich. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (135), 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 Polovich.
Has Polovich become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Polovich went from 105 recorded bearers to 118. That is an increase of 13 (+12.4%). In the national ranking it rose from #154,907 to #143,511.
What does the Census say about the background of Polovich?
Among Census respondents with the surname Polovich, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.1%) and Hispanic (4.2%). 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 Polovich in the 2020 Census, accounting for 86.4% (102 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Polovich appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (86.4%), Two or More Races (5.1%), Hispanic (4.2%). 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 Polovich (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 Polovich mean?
A surname derived from the Slavic root "pol", meaning field or land. 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 Polovich (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 Polovich?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.