2000
#114,852
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 141
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Stojanovich
A Serbian surname derived from a personal name meaning "one who stands steadfastly."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 139 Americans carry the last name Stojanovich. That puts it at #141,309 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,465,859 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Stojanovich 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
139
1 in 2,465,859
Census rank
#141,309
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
121
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 121 bearers of the surname Stojanovich in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 141309th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Stojanovich, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Stojanovich
The surname STOJANOVICH is of Slavic origin, with roots that can be traced back to the Balkan region. It is believed to have originated in the area now known as Serbia, possibly in the 14th or 15th century. The name is derived from the Serbian word "stojan," which means "to stand firm" or "to persevere." The suffix "-ovich" is a common patronymic ending in Slavic surnames, indicating that the name likely referred to the son of a person named Stojan.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in a 16th-century manuscript from the Serbian Orthodox monastery of Hilandar, located on Mount Athos, Greece. This document mentions a certain Stojanovich family who had donated land and resources to the monastery.
In the 17th century, the name appears in various historical records from the region, including tax registers and church documents. One notable figure from this period was Miloš Stojanovich, a Serbian military commander who played a significant role in the Serbian uprising against the Ottoman Empire in the early 1800s.
Another prominent individual bearing this surname was Slobodan Stojanovich (1908-1987), a Serbian-American historian and author who taught at several prestigious universities in the United States, including Columbia University and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. His works on Balkan history and the Ottoman Empire are widely respected in academic circles.
The name STOJANOVICH has also been associated with several geographical locations in the Balkans. For instance, there is a village called Stojanovich in central Serbia, which may have been named after an early settler or landowner with this surname.
Other notable individuals with the STOJANOVICH surname include:
1. Nikola Stojanovich (1842-1912), a Serbian painter and one of the pioneers of modern Serbian art.
2. Mihailo Stojanovich (1855-1932), a Serbian composer and music educator who helped establish the first music school in Belgrade.
3. Dimitrije Stojanovich (1891-1976), a Serbian-American mathematician and professor at the University of California, Berkeley.
4. Momčilo Stojanovich (1919-2005), a Serbian-American economic historian and professor at the University of California, Los Angeles.
5. Branko Stojanovich (born 1942), a Serbian-American engineer and entrepreneur, co-founder of the technology company Synopsys.
While the STOJANOVICH surname has its roots in the Balkans, it has since spread to other parts of the world through migration and diaspora communities, particularly in North America and Western Europe.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Stojanovich
Among Census respondents with the surname Stojanovich, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Stojanovich 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 Stojanovich surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.2% · 114
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.5% · 3
- Two or more races0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Stojanovich
Stojanovich 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
#126,018
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 136
-5 bearers (-3.5%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Down 11,166 places
2020
#141,309
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 121
-15 bearers (-11.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 15,291 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #114,852 | 141 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #126,018 | 136 | 0.05 | -5 bearers (-3.5%) | Down 11,166 places |
| 2020 | #141,309 | 121 | 0.04 | -15 bearers (-11.0%) | Down 15,291 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 Stojanovich 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 | #126,018 | #141,309 | -12.1% |
| Count | 136 | 121 | -11.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.04 | -19.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Stojanovich bearers went from 136 to 121 (-11.0% change). The surname moved down 15,291 positions in the national ranking, going from #126,018 to #141,309.
FAQ
Stojanovich surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Stojanovich?
Name Census estimates that about 139 living Americans carry the surname Stojanovich. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,465,859 residents.
How common is Stojanovich?
Stojanovich ranks #141,309 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 121 people with the surname Stojanovich. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (139), 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 Stojanovich.
Has Stojanovich become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Stojanovich went from 136 recorded bearers to 121. That is a decrease of 15 (-11.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #126,018 to #141,309.
What does the Census say about the background of Stojanovich?
Among Census respondents with the surname Stojanovich, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.5%). 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 Stojanovich in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.2% (114 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Stojanovich appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.2%), Hispanic (2.5%), Asian/Pacific Islander (2.5%). 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 Stojanovich (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 Stojanovich mean?
A Serbian surname derived from a personal name meaning "one who stands steadfastly." 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 Stojanovich (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 many people share the surname Stojanovich?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.