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

Rabinowitz, 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 Rabinowitz surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Rabinowitz in America

Rabinowitz is the 9203rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Rabinowitz surname appeared 3,544 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Rabinowitz.

We can also compare 2010 data for Rabinowitz 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 Rabinowitz

The surname Rabinowitz originates from the Ashkenazi Jewish communities of Eastern Europe, particularly in areas that are now part of modern-day Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, and Russia. It is a patronymic surname, derived from the Jewish male given name "Reuben" or "Reuven" in Hebrew, which means "behold, a son" or "he has seen my misery."

The Rabinowitz surname is believed to have emerged in the 16th or 17th century, during a time when Jews in Eastern Europe were required to adopt hereditary surnames. The suffix "-owitz" or "-vich" is a Slavic patronymic ending, indicating "son of." Thus, Rabinowitz literally translates to "son of Reuben" or "son of Rabbi."

One of the earliest recorded instances of the Rabinowitz surname can be found in the 1765 Revision List, a census-like document compiled in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. This record mentions a Leyzor Rabinowicz from the town of Zelva, now in Belarus.

Throughout history, there have been several notable figures with the Rabinowitz surname. One such individual was Rabbi Moshe Rabinowitz (1805-1866), a prominent Hasidic rabbi and author from Shklov, Belarus. Another was Solomon Rabinovich (1859-1916), a Russian-Jewish banker and industrialist who played a significant role in the development of the Russian oil industry.

Nachman Rabinovich (1835-1910), better known as Nachman Krochmal, was a renowned Jewish historian, philosopher, and maskil (proponent of the Jewish Enlightenment) from Galicia, now part of Ukraine. His seminal work, "Guide for the Perplexed of the Time," had a profound impact on Jewish thought and historiography.

Yitzhak Rabinovich (1910-1982), better known as Yitzhak Rabin, was an Israeli politician and military leader who served as the fifth Prime Minister of Israel. He played a pivotal role in the Oslo Accords and was tragically assassinated in 1995.

Another notable figure was Rabbi Shlomo Yosef Rabinovich (1905-1990), a renowned Hasidic rabbi and rosh yeshiva (head of a Talmudic academy) in Jerusalem. He was a respected authority on Jewish law and a prolific author.

These are just a few examples of individuals with the Rabinowitz surname who have made significant contributions throughout history in various fields, including religion, philosophy, business, and politics.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Rabinowitz

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

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 Rabinowitz 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 Rabinowitz 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 Rabinowitz was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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