Find out how popular the last name Ptacek is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Ptacek.

Ptacek, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Ptacek surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Ptacek in America

Ptacek is the 21811th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Ptacek surname appeared 1,192 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Ptacek.

We can also compare 2010 data for Ptacek to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Ptacek

The surname Ptacek is of Czech origin, derived from the Czech word "pták" meaning "bird." It likely originated as a nickname referring to someone with bird-like characteristics or as an occupational name for a bird catcher or seller.

The name can be traced back to the 14th century in the region of Bohemia, which is now part of the Czech Republic. Some of the earliest recorded instances of the name appear in parish records and tax rolls from this region during the Middle Ages.

One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Jan Ptacek, a nobleman and military commander who lived in the late 14th century. He served under King Wenceslaus IV of Bohemia and was known for his bravery in battle.

Another notable figure with this surname was Jindrich Ptacek, a Czech Renaissance painter born in 1528. He was renowned for his religious artwork and frescoes that adorned churches throughout Bohemia.

In the 17th century, the Ptacek family produced several notable scholars and writers. Vaclav Ptacek (1595-1669) was a Jesuit priest and author who wrote extensively on theology and philosophy, while his nephew, Jakub Ptacek (1622-1688), was a renowned linguist and translator of Latin texts.

The name Ptacek also has connections to the town of Ptacice, located in the Pardubice region of eastern Bohemia. It is believed that some branches of the Ptacek family may have taken their name from this place name.

During the 19th century, as Czech immigrants began to settle in other parts of Europe and the United States, the surname Ptacek spread to new regions. One notable bearer of the name from this era was Josef Ptacek (1818-1892), a Czech-American artist and painter who settled in New York City and became known for his landscapes and portraits.

While the surname Ptacek is still most prevalent in the Czech Republic and neighboring countries, it can also be found among Czech diaspora communities around the world, particularly in North America and Australia.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Ptacek

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Ptacek.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Ptacek was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Ptacek has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Ptacek was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Ptacek, please contact us.

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