2000
#140,756
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 109
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Sarkes
A surname possibly derived from the Greek word "sarx" meaning flesh or body.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 135 Americans carry the last name Sarkes. 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 Sarkes 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 Sarkes 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 Sarkes, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Sarkes
The surname Sarkes originates from Greece, with its earliest recorded use dating back to the 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the Greek word "sarx," meaning "flesh" or "body." This suggests that the name may have initially been used as a descriptive nickname or occupational surname for individuals involved in trades related to meat or butchery.
One of the earliest known references to the name Sarkes can be found in historical records from the island of Crete, where it appears in documents from the Venetian period. It is possible that the name was brought to the island by settlers or traders from mainland Greece during this time.
In the late 17th century, a notable figure named Ioannis Sarkes (1650-1718) was a prominent merchant and ship owner based in the port city of Chania, Crete. His commercial endeavors helped establish the Sarkes family as a respected lineage within the local community.
Another early record of the name can be traced to the Greek island of Lesvos, where a family by the name of Sarkes resided in the village of Plomari during the 18th century. One member of this family, Georgios Sarkes (1725-1802), was a celebrated poet and scholar who contributed significantly to the preservation of the island's cultural heritage.
As Greek communities began to establish themselves in other parts of the world, the surname Sarkes also spread. In the early 19th century, a man named Konstantinos Sarkes (1790-1862) immigrated to the United States and settled in New York City, where he worked as a tradesman and became one of the earliest bearers of the name in America.
In the field of literature, a notable figure with the surname Sarkes was the Greek poet and playwright Nikolaos Sarkes (1855-1925). His works, which often explored themes of love, loss, and the human condition, earned him widespread acclaim and contributed to the cultural renaissance of modern Greek literature.
Throughout its history, the surname Sarkes has maintained its Greek roots and continues to be associated with individuals of Greek descent, both within Greece and in Greek communities around the world.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sarkes
Among Census respondents with the surname Sarkes, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Sarkes 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 Sarkes surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.0% · 105
- Hispanic or Latino6.8% · 8
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.5% · 3
- Two or more races1.7% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Sarkes
Sarkes 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
#148,347
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
+2 bearers (+1.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 7,591 places
2020
#143,511
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 118
+7 bearers (+6.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 4,836 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #140,756 | 109 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #148,347 | 111 | 0.04 | +2 bearers (+1.8%) | Down 7,591 places |
| 2020 | #143,511 | 118 | 0.04 | +7 bearers (+6.3%) | Up 4,836 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 Sarkes 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 | #148,347 | #143,511 | 3.3% |
| Count | 111 | 118 | 6.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -1.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Sarkes bearers went from 111 to 118 (+6.3% change). The surname moved up 4,836 positions in the national ranking, going from #148,347 to #143,511.
FAQ
Sarkes surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Sarkes?
Name Census estimates that about 135 living Americans carry the surname Sarkes. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,538,921 residents.
How common is Sarkes?
Sarkes 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 Sarkes. 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 Sarkes.
Has Sarkes become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Sarkes went from 111 recorded bearers to 118. That is an increase of 7 (+6.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #148,347 to #143,511.
What does the Census say about the background of Sarkes?
Among Census respondents with the surname Sarkes, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.5%). 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 Sarkes in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.0% (105 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Sarkes appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.0%), Hispanic (6.8%), Asian/Pacific Islander (2.5%). 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 Sarkes (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 Sarkes mean?
A surname possibly derived from the Greek word "sarx" meaning flesh or body. 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 Sarkes (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 common is the surname Sarkes?
For a quick modern take, check how many people are called Sarkes on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.