Sorkin last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Sorkin

A surname of uncertain origin, possibly derived from a place name or an occupational term.

Sorkin, 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 Sorkin surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Sorkin in America

Sorkin is the 22963rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Sorkin surname appeared 1,114 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 Sorkin.

We can also compare 2010 data for Sorkin 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 22963 22370 2.62%
Count 1,114 1,074 3.66%
Proportion per 100k 0.38 0.40 -5.13%

The history of the last name Sorkin

The surname Sorkin originated in Russia and Poland during the 18th century. It is derived from the Russian word "sorok," which means "forty," and the Yiddish suffix "-in," indicating a place of origin or occupation. The name likely referred to someone who lived near a place called Sorok or was involved in a trade related to the number forty.

The earliest recorded instance of the surname Sorkin can be found in the Pale of Settlement, a region in the western part of the Russian Empire where Jews were allowed to reside and work. The name appears in various Jewish community records and census documents from the late 18th and early 19th centuries.

One notable bearer of the Sorkin surname was Isaac Sorkin (1765-1842), a prominent rabbi and Talmudic scholar from Vilna, Lithuania. He authored several influential works on Jewish law and ethics, including his commentary on the Shulchan Arukh, a key legal code in Judaism.

Another significant figure was Raphael Sorkin (1808-1867), a Russian-born Jewish banker and philanthropist. He made significant contributions to educational and charitable causes in the Jewish community of Warsaw, Poland.

In the 20th century, Aaron Sorkin (born 1961) gained international recognition as an American screenwriter and playwright. He is best known for his works such as "A Few Good Men," "The American President," "The West Wing," and "The Social Network," for which he won an Academy Award.

Yuri Sorkin (1932-2005) was a Soviet and Russian physicist who made significant contributions to the fields of quantum electrodynamics and particle physics. He was a member of the Russian Academy of Sciences and received numerous awards for his scientific achievements.

Lastly, Itzik Sorkin (1898-1982) was a renowned Ukrainian-born Israeli painter and sculptor. He was a prominent figure in the Bezalel School of Arts and Crafts in Jerusalem and is known for his unique style that combined traditional Jewish motifs with modern artistic techniques.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Sorkin

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

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 Sorkin was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 94.52% 1,053
Non-Hispanic Black Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 0.63% 7
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 1.44% 16
Hispanic Origin 2.69% 30

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 Sorkin has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 94.52% 96.37% -1.94%
Black (S)% (S)% (S)%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.63% 0.65% -3.13%
American Indian and Alaskan Native (S)% (S)% (S)%
Two or More Races 1.44% 0.93% 43.04%
Hispanic 2.69% 1.21% 75.90%

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

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

Reference this page

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"Sorkin last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on September 21, 2025. http://namecensus.com/last-names/sorkin-surname-popularity/.

"Sorkin last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/sorkin-surname-popularity/. Accessed 21 September, 2025

Sorkin last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/sorkin-surname-popularity/.

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