2000
#123,314
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 129
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Skomski
A surname of Polish origin indicating someone who lived near a grove or forest.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 130 Americans carry the last name Skomski. That puts it at #147,221 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,636,572 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Skomski 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
130
1 in 2,636,572
Census rank
#147,221
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
113
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 113 bearers of the surname Skomski in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 147221st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Skomski, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.8%) and Black (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Skomski
The surname Skomski is of Polish origin, derived from the personal name Skomski or Skomski, which in turn is derived from the Polish word "skomać," meaning "to neigh" or "to whinny." It is believed to have originated in the 14th or 15th century.
The earliest recorded instances of the name date back to the late 16th century, when it appeared in various records and manuscripts from the Polish regions of Silesia and Greater Poland. One notable early bearer of the name was Jan Skomski, a landowner and nobleman from the village of Skomsko in the Kalisz region of Greater Poland, who lived in the mid-16th century.
In the 17th century, the name appeared in various parish records and tax registers across Poland, indicating its spread across the country. One of the earliest known bearers from this period was Mikołaj Skomski, a merchant from the town of Poznań, who was born in the late 16th century and died in the mid-17th century.
The name Skomski has also been associated with several notable figures throughout history, including Jakub Skomski (1640-1712), a Polish priest and theologian who served as the rector of the Jagiellonian University in Kraków. Another notable bearer was Franciszek Skomski (1792-1866), a Polish writer and historian who authored several works on the history of Greater Poland.
In the 19th century, the name continued to be found across Poland, with several individuals bearing the name achieving recognition in various fields. One such individual was Józef Skomski (1833-1902), a Polish painter and professor of art who taught at the Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków. Another notable bearer from this period was Wincenty Skomski (1840-1918), a Polish architect and engineer who designed several notable buildings in Warsaw.
As the surname Skomski spread across Poland, it also began to appear in other parts of Europe, particularly in areas with significant Polish populations. For example, records from the late 19th and early 20th centuries show individuals with the surname living in areas of present-day Germany, such as Silesia and Pomerania, which had historically been part of Poland.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Skomski
Among Census respondents with the surname Skomski, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.8%) and Black (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Skomski 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 Skomski surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White97.3% · 110
- Hispanic or Latino1.8% · 2
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Skomski
Skomski 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
#129,047
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 132
+3 bearers (+2.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 5,733 places
2020
#147,221
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
-19 bearers (-14.4%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 18,174 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #123,314 | 129 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #129,047 | 132 | 0.04 | +3 bearers (+2.3%) | Down 5,733 places |
| 2020 | #147,221 | 113 | 0.04 | -19 bearers (-14.4%) | Down 18,174 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 Skomski 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 | #129,047 | #147,221 | -14.1% |
| Count | 132 | 113 | -14.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -5.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Skomski bearers went from 132 to 113 (-14.4% change). The surname moved down 18,174 positions in the national ranking, going from #129,047 to #147,221.
FAQ
Skomski surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Skomski?
Name Census estimates that about 130 living Americans carry the surname Skomski. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,636,572 residents.
How common is Skomski?
Skomski ranks #147,221 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 113 people with the surname Skomski. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (130), 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 Skomski.
Has Skomski become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Skomski went from 132 recorded bearers to 113. That is a decrease of 19 (-14.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #129,047 to #147,221.
What does the Census say about the background of Skomski?
Among Census respondents with the surname Skomski, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.8%) and Black (0.9%). 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 Skomski in the 2020 Census, accounting for 97.3% (110 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Skomski appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (97.3%), Hispanic (1.8%), Black (0.9%). 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 Skomski (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 Skomski mean?
A surname of Polish origin indicating someone who lived near a grove or forest. 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 Skomski (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 Skomski?
For a quick modern take, check how many people are called Skomski on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.