2000
#136,783
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Sopcak
A surname derived from the Slovak word meaning a bagpiper.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 112 Americans carry the last name Sopcak. That puts it at #156,269 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 3,060,307 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Sopcak 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
112
1 in 3,060,307
Census rank
#156,269
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
98
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 98 bearers of the surname Sopcak in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 156269th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Sopcak, the largest self-reported group is White at 98.0%. The next largest groups are Black (2.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Sopcak
The surname SOPCAK has its origins in the Slovak region of Eastern Europe. It is believed to have emerged in the late 15th or early 16th century, during a period of increased migration and settlement in the area.
SOPCAK is thought to be derived from the Slovak word "sopka," which means "volcano." This suggests that the name may have initially been descriptive, referring to someone who lived near a volcanic region or worked in an occupation related to volcanoes or geology.
Some of the earliest recorded instances of the SOPCAK surname can be found in municipal records and church registers from the towns and villages of central and eastern Slovakia, particularly in the regions around the Tatra Mountains and the Spiš area.
While no specific historical figures with the surname SOPCAK have been widely documented, it is likely that the name was associated with families involved in agriculture, mining, or other local industries common to the region during the 16th and 17th centuries.
One notable individual with the surname SOPCAK was Ján Sopcak, a Slovak politician and member of the National Council of the Slovak Republic, who was born in 1958 and served as a representative for the Party of the Democratic Left (SDL) in the late 20th century.
Another individual worth mentioning is Michal Sopcak, a Slovak ice hockey player who competed in several international tournaments during the 1990s and early 2000s, representing Slovakia at the World Championships and Olympic Games.
In the 19th century, the name SOPCAK can be found in various historical records related to the Austro-Hungarian Empire, which governed much of the Slovak region at the time. Instances of the surname appear in military records, census documents, and other official registers from this period.
While not a widely documented surname, SOPCAK has a rich history rooted in the cultural and linguistic traditions of the Slovak people, with potential connections to the region's geological and occupational heritage.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sopcak
Among Census respondents with the surname Sopcak, the largest self-reported group is White at 98.0%. The next largest groups are Black (2.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Sopcak 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 Sopcak surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White98.0% · 96
- Black or African American2.0% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Sopcak
Sopcak 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
#137,327
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 122
+9 bearers (+8.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 544 places
2020
#156,269
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 98
-24 bearers (-19.7%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 18,942 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #136,783 | 113 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #137,327 | 122 | 0.04 | +9 bearers (+8.0%) | Down 544 places |
| 2020 | #156,269 | 98 | 0.03 | -24 bearers (-19.7%) | Down 18,942 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 Sopcak 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 | #137,327 | #156,269 | -13.8% |
| Count | 122 | 98 | -19.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -18.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Sopcak bearers went from 122 to 98 (-19.7% change). The surname moved down 18,942 positions in the national ranking, going from #137,327 to #156,269.
FAQ
Sopcak surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Sopcak?
Name Census estimates that about 112 living Americans carry the surname Sopcak. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 3,060,307 residents.
How common is Sopcak?
Sopcak ranks #156,269 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 98 people with the surname Sopcak. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (112), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Sopcak.
Has Sopcak become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Sopcak went from 122 recorded bearers to 98. That is a decrease of 24 (-19.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #137,327 to #156,269.
What does the Census say about the background of Sopcak?
Among Census respondents with the surname Sopcak, the largest self-reported group is White at 98.0%. The next largest groups are Black (2.0%). 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 Sopcak in the 2020 Census, accounting for 98.0% (96 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Sopcak appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (98.0%), Black (2.0%). 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 Sopcak (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 Sopcak mean?
A surname derived from the Slovak word meaning a bagpiper. 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 Sopcak (0.03 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 many people are called Sopcak?
If you just want to know how common the surname Sopcak is, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.