2000
#14,521
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,882
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.70
Rare Last name
Rybak
An occupational surname of Slavic origin referring to a fisherman or one who catches and sells fish.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,244 Americans carry the last name Rybak. That puts it at #14,611 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.65 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 152,743 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Rybak 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 Rybak with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.2K
1 in 152,743
Census rank
#14,611
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,957 bearers of the surname Rybak in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.65 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14611th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Rybak, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.3%) and Two or More Races (2.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Rybak
The surname Rybak is of Polish origin, derived from the Polish word "ryba" meaning "fish". It is an occupational surname initially given to those who worked as fishermen or fish merchants.
The earliest recorded instances of the Rybak surname date back to the 14th century in Poland. In historical records from the city of Kraków, a "Henricus Rybak" is mentioned as a resident in 1390. The name also appears in the Akta Grodzkie, a collection of court records from the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, with a "Jan Rybak" listed in 1428.
During the Middle Ages, the Rybak surname was particularly prevalent in the regions surrounding the Vistula River and the Baltic Sea coast, where fishing was a common occupation. The name can be found in various old Polish town and village names, such as Rybakowo and Rybakówka, which likely originated from the presence of Rybak families in those areas.
One of the earliest known bearers of the Rybak surname was Jan Rybak, a Polish writer and translator who lived in the 16th century. He is best known for his translation of Aesop's Fables into Polish, published in 1554.
Another notable figure was Jakub Rybak, a Polish soldier and military engineer who lived in the 17th century. He served in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth's army and is credited with designing fortifications in various cities, including Lviv and Kamianets-Podilskyi.
In the 18th century, Józef Rybak was a prominent Polish painter and engraver. He was born in 1730 and is renowned for his religious paintings and engravings, many of which can be found in churches across Poland.
The 19th century saw the birth of Feliks Rybak, a Polish composer and conductor. Born in 1848, he is best known for his operas and choral works, which were widely performed in Poland and throughout Europe during his lifetime.
Finally, in the early 20th century, Józef Rybak was a Polish politician and activist. Born in 1882, he was a member of the Polish Socialist Party and played a significant role in the struggle for Polish independence from the Russian Empire.
While the Rybak surname is still relatively common in Poland today, its origins can be traced back to the occupational roots of fishing and fish trading in the Middle Ages, with a rich history spanning several centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rybak
Among Census respondents with the surname Rybak, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.3%) and Two or More Races (2.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Rybak 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 Rybak surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.4% · 1,847
- Hispanic or Latino2.3% · 45
- Two or more races2.1% · 42
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 12
- Black or African American0.4% · 8
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Rybak
Rybak 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
#15,223
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,934
+52 bearers (+2.8%)
Per 100,000 0.66
Rank movement Down 702 places
2020
#14,611
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,957
+23 bearers (+1.2%)
Per 100,000 0.65
Rank movement Up 612 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #14,521 | 1,882 | 0.70 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #15,223 | 1,934 | 0.66 | +52 bearers (+2.8%) | Down 702 places |
| 2020 | #14,611 | 1,957 | 0.65 | +23 bearers (+1.2%) | Up 612 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 Rybak 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 | #15,223 | #14,611 | 4.0% |
| Count | 1,934 | 1,957 | 1.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.66 | 0.65 | -0.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Rybak bearers went from 1,934 to 1,957 (+1.2% change). The surname moved up 612 positions in the national ranking, going from #15,223 to #14,611.
FAQ
Rybak surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Rybak?
Name Census estimates that about 2,244 living Americans carry the surname Rybak. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 152,743 residents.
How common is Rybak?
Rybak ranks #14,611 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.65 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 1,957 people with the surname Rybak. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,244), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.65 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.65 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 Rybak.
Has Rybak become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Rybak went from 1,934 recorded bearers to 1,957. That is an increase of 23 (+1.2%). In the national ranking it rose from #15,223 to #14,611.
What does the Census say about the background of Rybak?
Among Census respondents with the surname Rybak, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.3%) 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 Rybak in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.4% (1,847 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Rybak appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.4%), Hispanic (2.3%), 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 Rybak (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 Rybak mean?
An occupational surname of Slavic origin referring to a fisherman or one who catches and sells fish. 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 Rybak (0.65 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 common is the surname Rybak?
If you just want to know how many people have the surname Rybak, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.