2000
#149,328
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 101
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Szorc
A surname derived from a Polish or Slavic word meaning "sour" or "bitter."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 132 Americans carry the last name Szorc. That puts it at #145,757 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,596,624 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Szorc 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
132
1 in 2,596,624
Census rank
#145,757
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
115
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 115 bearers of the surname Szorc in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 145757th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Szorc, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.5%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (3.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Szorc
The surname "SZORC" is of Polish origin, derived from the word "szorec" meaning "rough" or "coarse." It is believed to have originated in the region of Silesia, which was historically part of Poland but is now divided between Poland and the Czech Republic. The name likely emerged during the Middle Ages, around the 13th or 14th century.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Liber Beneficiorum, a historical record of benefices and church properties in the Archdiocese of Gniezno, dating back to the 15th century. The document mentions a certain "Szorc de Kalisz," indicating that the name was present in the city of Kalisz at that time.
In the 16th century, the name appeared in various records from the region of Silesia, including tax registers and land ownership documents. One notable bearer of the name was Jan Szorc, a landowner and farmer from the village of Gogołowa, who lived in the mid-1500s.
During the 17th century, the name spread to other parts of Poland, as evidenced by church records from cities like Kraków and Poznań. A prominent figure from this era was Andrzej Szorc, a merchant and alderman in the city of Gdańsk, who was born in 1620 and died in 1687.
In the 18th century, the name Szorc could be found in various regions of Poland, including Wielkopolska, Małopolska, and Mazowsze. One notable person with this surname was Franciszek Szorc, a Polish patriot and soldier who fought in the Kościuszko Uprising against the Russian Empire in 1794.
The 19th century saw the continued presence of the Szorc name in Poland, with several individuals bearing this surname making contributions to various fields. One example is Józef Szorc, a Polish writer and journalist born in 1836 in the city of Lublin, known for his works on Polish history and culture.
As the surname Szorc spread across Poland over the centuries, it also encountered variations in spelling, such as Szorec, Szortz, or Szorcz, reflecting local dialects and pronunciation differences. However, the core meaning and origin of the name remained rooted in its Silesian beginnings.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Szorc
Among Census respondents with the surname Szorc, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.5%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (3.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Szorc 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 Szorc surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White96.5% · 111
- American Indian and Alaska Native3.5% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Szorc
Szorc 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
#148,347
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
+10 bearers (+9.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 981 places
2020
#145,757
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
+4 bearers (+3.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 2,590 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #149,328 | 101 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #148,347 | 111 | 0.04 | +10 bearers (+9.9%) | Up 981 places |
| 2020 | #145,757 | 115 | 0.04 | +4 bearers (+3.6%) | Up 2,590 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 Szorc 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 | #148,347 | #145,757 | 1.7% |
| Count | 111 | 115 | 3.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -3.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Szorc bearers went from 111 to 115 (+3.6% change). The surname moved up 2,590 positions in the national ranking, going from #148,347 to #145,757.
FAQ
Szorc surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Szorc?
Name Census estimates that about 132 living Americans carry the surname Szorc. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,596,624 residents.
How common is Szorc?
Szorc ranks #145,757 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 115 people with the surname Szorc. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (132), 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 Szorc.
Has Szorc become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Szorc went from 111 recorded bearers to 115. That is an increase of 4 (+3.6%). In the national ranking it rose from #148,347 to #145,757.
What does the Census say about the background of Szorc?
Among Census respondents with the surname Szorc, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.5%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (3.5%). 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 Szorc in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.5% (111 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Szorc appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (96.5%), American Indian/Alaska Native (3.5%). 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 Szorc (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 Szorc mean?
A surname derived from a Polish or Slavic word meaning "sour" or "bitter." 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 Szorc (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 are called Szorc?
Want to know how many Americans have the surname Szorc? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.