2010
#160,975
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 100
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.03
Very Rare Last name
Spedoske
An occupational surname indicating a maker or dealer of woolen goods.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 117 Americans carry the last name Spedoske. That puts it at #154,755 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,929,524 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Spedoske 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
117
1 in 2,929,524
Census rank
#154,755
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
102
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 102 bearers of the surname Spedoske in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 154755th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Spedoske, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Black (2.9%) and Hispanic (2.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Spedoske
The surname SPEDOSKE has its origins in the Slavic regions of Eastern Europe, particularly in modern-day Poland and Ukraine. The name likely emerged during the Middle Ages, around the 12th or 13th century. It is believed to be derived from an Old Slavic word, potentially related to words meaning "speed" or "swift."
In its earliest forms, the name was likely spelled in various ways, such as Spedoski, Spedosky, or Spedoske, reflecting regional dialects and variations in transliteration from Cyrillic to Latin scripts. The name may have initially referred to a person's occupation or physical characteristic, perhaps denoting someone who was known for their swiftness or agility.
Historical records from the region are scarce, but some early references to variations of the SPEDOSKE surname can be found in local parish records and land registries from the 16th and 17th centuries. One notable mention is in a 1678 document from the town of Lviv (then part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth), which lists a landowner named Jakub Spedoski.
As the name spread across Eastern Europe, it evolved into various spellings and forms. In the 18th century, a Russian nobleman named Fyodor Spedoskin (1726-1792) held significant influence in the court of Catherine the Great. Another notable figure was the Polish painter and illustrator Kazimierz Spedowski (1839-1912), known for his depictions of rural life in the Kraków region.
In the 19th century, the SPEDOSKE surname can be found among immigrants from Eastern Europe who settled in various parts of the United States and Canada. One such individual was Jan Spedoske (1842-1918), a farmer from Galicia who immigrated to Wisconsin in the late 1800s and became a prominent member of the local Polish-American community.
Another notable bearer of the name was Maria Spedoska (1876-1954), a Ukrainian-born writer and activist who advocated for women's rights and education in the early 20th century. Her works, published under the name Maria Spedoske, brought attention to the struggles of Ukrainian women during a turbulent period in the region's history.
As the SPEDOSKE name spread across generations and continents, it has been carried by individuals from diverse backgrounds and professions, reflecting the rich tapestry of cultures and experiences that have shaped its legacy over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Spedoske
Among Census respondents with the surname Spedoske, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Black (2.9%) and Hispanic (2.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Spedoske 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 Spedoske surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.1% · 96
- Black or African American2.9% · 3
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Spedoske
Spedoske appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#154,755
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
+2 bearers (+2.0%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Up 6,220 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #160,975 | 100 | 0.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #154,755 | 102 | 0.03 | +2 bearers (+2.0%) | Up 6,220 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 Spedoske 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 | #160,975 | #154,755 | 3.9% |
| Count | 100 | 102 | 2.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.03 | 13.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Spedoske bearers went from 100 to 102 (+2.0% change). The surname moved up 6,220 positions in the national ranking, going from #160,975 to #154,755.
FAQ
Spedoske surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Spedoske?
Name Census estimates that about 117 living Americans carry the surname Spedoske. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,929,524 residents.
How common is Spedoske?
Spedoske ranks #154,755 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 102 people with the surname Spedoske. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (117), 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 Spedoske.
Has Spedoske become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Spedoske went from 100 recorded bearers to 102. That is an increase of 2 (+2.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #160,975 to #154,755.
What does the Census say about the background of Spedoske?
Among Census respondents with the surname Spedoske, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Black (2.9%) and Hispanic (2.9%). 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 Spedoske in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.1% (96 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Spedoske appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.1%), Black (2.9%), Hispanic (2.9%). 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 Spedoske (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 Spedoske mean?
An occupational surname indicating a maker or dealer of woolen goods. 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 Spedoske (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 share the surname Spedoske?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.