2000
#149,328
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 101
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Szpunar
A Polish surname meaning a person who spun yarn or thread.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 128 Americans carry the last name Szpunar. That puts it at #147,954 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,677,768 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Szpunar 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
128
1 in 2,677,768
Census rank
#147,954
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
112
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 112 bearers of the surname Szpunar in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 147954th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Szpunar, the largest self-reported group is White at 99.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Szpunar
The surname Szpunar is of Polish origin, originating in the late medieval period. It is believed to derive from the Polish word "szpuna," which referred to a type of metal band or hoop used in barrel-making. This suggests that the name may have originally been an occupational surname, referring to someone who made or worked with these metal hoops.
The earliest recorded instances of the Szpunar surname can be found in 16th-century Polish records and documents. One notable early bearer of the name was Jan Szpunar, a barrel-maker from the town of Krakow, mentioned in a guild register from 1572.
In the 17th and 18th centuries, the Szpunar name spread to various regions of Poland, including the areas around Warsaw, Lublin, and Poznan. Some variations in spelling, such as Szpunarczyk and Szpunarski, also emerged during this time.
Historically, the Szpunar name has been associated with several notable individuals. One such figure was Tomasz Szpunar, a Polish nobleman and landowner who lived in the late 16th century. Records show that he owned substantial estates in the Krakow region.
Another prominent bearer of the name was Katarzyna Szpunar, a Polish writer and poet who lived in the 18th century. She is best known for her collection of religious poetry published in 1765.
In the 19th century, the Szpunar surname gained further recognition through the works of Józef Szpunar, a respected Polish historian and academic. He authored several books on Polish history and served as a professor at the University of Warsaw from 1845 until his death in 1875.
Other notable individuals with the Szpunar surname include Franciszek Szpunar, a 19th-century Polish military officer who fought in the November Uprising against Russian rule, and Władysław Szpunar, a Polish politician and member of the Sejm (parliament) in the early 20th century.
While the Szpunar name has its roots in Poland, it has since spread to other parts of the world through migration and diaspora communities. However, its origins remain firmly tied to the Polish language and the country's rich cultural heritage.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Szpunar
Among Census respondents with the surname Szpunar, the largest self-reported group is White at 99.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Szpunar 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 Szpunar surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White99.1% · 111
- Hispanic or Latino0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Szpunar
Szpunar 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
#138,304
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 121
+20 bearers (+19.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 11,024 places
2020
#147,954
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
-9 bearers (-7.4%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 9,650 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 | #138,304 | 121 | 0.04 | +20 bearers (+19.8%) | Up 11,024 places |
| 2020 | #147,954 | 112 | 0.04 | -9 bearers (-7.4%) | Down 9,650 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 Szpunar 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 | #138,304 | #147,954 | -7.0% |
| Count | 121 | 112 | -7.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -6.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Szpunar bearers went from 121 to 112 (-7.4% change). The surname moved down 9,650 positions in the national ranking, going from #138,304 to #147,954.
FAQ
Szpunar surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Szpunar?
Name Census estimates that about 128 living Americans carry the surname Szpunar. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,677,768 residents.
How common is Szpunar?
Szpunar ranks #147,954 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 112 people with the surname Szpunar. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (128), 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 Szpunar.
Has Szpunar become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Szpunar went from 121 recorded bearers to 112. That is a decrease of 9 (-7.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #138,304 to #147,954.
What does the Census say about the background of Szpunar?
Among Census respondents with the surname Szpunar, the largest self-reported group is White at 99.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (0.9%). 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 Szpunar in the 2020 Census, accounting for 99.1% (111 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Szpunar appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (99.1%), Hispanic (0.9%). 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 Szpunar (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 Szpunar mean?
A Polish surname meaning a person who spun yarn or thread. 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 Szpunar (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 common is the surname Szpunar?
Want to know how many Americans have the surname Szpunar? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.