2000
#6,719
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,631
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.72
Rare Last name
Resnick
A Jewish occupational surname derived from the Slavic word "reznik," meaning "butcher" or "ritual slaughterer."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,962 Americans carry the last name Resnick. That puts it at #7,426 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.45 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 69,076 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Resnick 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
5.0K
1 in 69,076
Census rank
#7,426
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,327 bearers of the surname Resnick in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.45 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7426th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Resnick, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Resnick
The surname Resnick is of Jewish origin, derived from the Yiddish personal name Resnick or Resnyk, which was a nickname meaning "the truthful one" or "the righteous one." The name is believed to have originated in Eastern Europe, particularly in areas such as Poland, Russia, and Ukraine, where large Jewish communities existed.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname Resnick can be traced back to the 18th century in various Jewish community records and census documents. One of the earliest known individuals bearing this name was Yehuda Resnick, who lived in the town of Lublin, Poland, in the late 1700s.
In the 19th century, the surname Resnick began to spread more widely as Jewish communities migrated to other parts of Europe and eventually to the United States and other countries. Some notable individuals with the surname Resnick from this period include:
1. Rabbi Chaim Resnick (1820-1892), a prominent Hasidic rabbi and Talmudic scholar from Galicia, present-day Poland and Ukraine.
2. Yitzchok Resnick (1860-1932), a Jewish author and educator from Lviv, Ukraine.
As the 20th century dawned, the Resnick surname became more prevalent in various parts of the world, particularly in North America, where many Jewish immigrants settled. Several notable individuals with this surname emerged during this time:
1. David Resnick (1894-1974), an American businessman and philanthropist from Philadelphia.
2. Solomon Resnick (1908-1996), a Russian-born American author and journalist known for his works on Jewish culture and history.
3. Marcia Resnick (1911-1985), an American artist and painter known for her abstract expressionist works.
4. Robert Resnick (1923-2014), an American physicist and author of several influential textbooks on physics.
5. Harvey Resnick (1936-2022), an American businessman and real estate developer from New York City.
Throughout its history, the surname Resnick has been associated with various place names and alternative spellings, such as Resnyk, Resnitzer, and Resnitzky, reflecting the diverse regions and languages in which it has been used.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Resnick
Among Census respondents with the surname Resnick, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Resnick 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 Resnick surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.8% · 4,057
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 125
- Two or more races2.0% · 87
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 35
- Black or African American0.5% · 23
Timeline
Historical Census data for Resnick
Resnick 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
#7,191
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,647
+16 bearers (+0.3%)
Per 100,000 1.58
Rank movement Down 472 places
2020
#7,426
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,327
-320 bearers (-6.9%)
Per 100,000 1.45
Rank movement Down 235 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,719 | 4,631 | 1.72 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,191 | 4,647 | 1.58 | +16 bearers (+0.3%) | Down 472 places |
| 2020 | #7,426 | 4,327 | 1.45 | -320 bearers (-6.9%) | Down 235 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 Resnick 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 | #7,191 | #7,426 | -3.3% |
| Count | 4,647 | 4,327 | -6.9% |
| Per 100K | 1.58 | 1.45 | -8.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Resnick bearers went from 4,647 to 4,327 (-6.9% change). The surname moved down 235 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,191 to #7,426.
FAQ
Resnick surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Resnick?
Name Census estimates that about 4,962 living Americans carry the surname Resnick. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 69,076 residents.
How common is Resnick?
Resnick ranks #7,426 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.45 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 4,327 people with the surname Resnick. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,962), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.45 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.45 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Resnick.
Has Resnick become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Resnick went from 4,647 recorded bearers to 4,327. That is a decrease of 320 (-6.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,191 to #7,426.
What does the Census say about the background of Resnick?
Among Census respondents with the surname Resnick, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.0%). 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 Resnick in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.8% (4,057 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Resnick appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.8%), Hispanic (2.9%), Two or More Races (2.0%). 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 Resnick (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 Resnick mean?
A Jewish occupational surname derived from the Slavic word "reznik," meaning "butcher" or "ritual slaughterer." 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 Resnick (1.45 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 are called Resnick?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the surname Resnick at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.