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

Selznick, 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 Selznick surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Selznick in America

Selznick is the 99845th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Selznick surname appeared 181 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 Selznick.

We can also compare 2010 data for Selznick 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 Selznick

The surname SELZNICK is a variation of the German surname Selznik or Selznick, which originated in the region of Selznik, located in the southwest of modern-day Germany. The name is believed to have derived from the Old High German word "salz," meaning salt, and "nik," which means a small stream or brook, suggesting that the name may have referred to a salty stream or a location near a salty body of water.

Records show that the name SELZNICK first appeared in the 12th century in the Rhineland region of Germany. One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus, a collection of medieval documents from the region, where a certain Henricus de Selznik is mentioned in 1187.

During the Middle Ages, the SELZNICK family appears to have been prominent landowners and nobles in the Rhineland area. A notable figure was Johann von Selznik (1225-1298), who served as a knight and advisor to the Archbishop of Cologne.

As the name spread across Europe, it underwent various spelling variations, such as Selznick, Selznik, and Selznicker. In England, the earliest recorded instance of the name was in the 16th century, where a Thomas Selznick is mentioned in the parish records of St. Mary's Church in Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk, in 1563.

One of the most renowned individuals bearing the SELZNICK surname was the American film producer David O. Selznick (1902-1965), who was responsible for producing iconic films like "Gone with the Wind" (1939) and "Rebecca" (1940). Another notable figure was the Russian-American mathematician Yakov Grigorevich Sinai (1935-2023), whose original surname was Selznik before it was russified.

Other historical figures with the SELZNICK surname include:

1. Johann Selznick (1681-1738), a German composer and organist active in the Baroque period.
2. Gertrude Selznick (1872-1947), an American philanthropist and women's rights activist.
3. Lewis J. Selznick (1870-1933), an American film producer and co-founder of the Selznick Pictures Corporation.
4. Myron Selznick (1898-1944), an American film producer and talent agent, brother of David O. Selznick.

The SELZNICK surname has a rich history spanning several centuries, with its origins rooted in the German regions along the Rhine River. While the name has undergone various spelling changes over time, it has maintained its association with notable figures in fields such as film, music, and philanthropy.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Selznick

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

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

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

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