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

Socha, 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 Socha surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Socha in America

Socha is the 10739th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Socha surname appeared 2,972 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Socha.

We can also compare 2010 data for Socha 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 Socha

The surname Socha is believed to have originated in Poland. It is thought to be derived from the Old Polish word "socha," which referred to a type of wooden plow used in agriculture. This suggests that the name may have originally been associated with farmers or those who worked the land.

One of the earliest recorded mentions of the surname Socha can be found in the Liber Beneficiorum, a 15th-century document listing landowners and clergy in the Archdiocese of Gniezno in Poland. The name appears in various spellings, including Socha, Szocha, and Sochaczewski, indicating its presence in the region during the medieval period.

In the 16th century, the surname Socha was found in the records of the Polish town of Bydgoszcz, where it was often associated with individuals involved in agricultural or rural occupations. This further reinforces the connection between the name and its potential origins as a descriptor of those who worked with the socha plow.

During the 17th and 18th centuries, the name Socha spread to other parts of Poland and surrounding regions. Notable individuals bearing this surname include Jan Socha (1609-1671), a Polish philosopher and writer, and Michał Socha (1732-1804), a Polish noble and landowner.

In the 19th century, the surname Socha gained prominence through the works of Józef Socha (1822-1888), a Polish writer and journalist who played a significant role in the development of Polish literature and cultural identity. Another notable figure was Stanisław Socha (1859-1935), a Polish engineer and inventor who made contributions to the field of railway technology.

As the Socha family dispersed throughout Poland and beyond, the name was also found in other countries, including Ukraine, Belarus, and Lithuania, where variations such as Sokhach and Sokha emerged. Antoni Socha (1894-1977), a Polish-American engineer and inventor, was born in Ukraine and later immigrated to the United States, where he obtained several patents for his innovations.

Throughout its history, the surname Socha has been associated with individuals from various professions, including writers, artists, scientists, and military figures, reflecting the diverse paths taken by those who bore this name. Despite its humble origins, the surname Socha has left an indelible mark on the cultural and intellectual landscape of Poland and beyond.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Socha

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

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!