2000
#138,741
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Tesluk
A surname potentially derived from a personal name or nickname related to a metal worker.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 130 Americans carry the last name Tesluk. That puts it at #147,221 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,636,572 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Tesluk 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
130
1 in 2,636,572
Census rank
#147,221
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
113
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 113 bearers of the surname Tesluk in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 147221st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Tesluk, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.5%) and Black (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Tesluk
The surname Tesluk is believed to have originated in the region of modern-day Poland during the late medieval period, around the 14th or 15th century. It is thought to be derived from the Old Polish word "teslic," which referred to a type of woodworking tool or chisel. This suggests that the name may have originally been an occupational surname, given to someone who worked as a woodcarver or carpenter.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Tesluk name can be found in the Akta Grodzkie records, a collection of court documents from the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth dating back to the 15th century. In these records, a man named Jakub Tesluk is mentioned as a resident of the town of Sandomierz in the year 1487.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the Tesluk surname began to spread throughout various regions of Poland, with several notable individuals bearing the name appearing in historical records. For example, Stanisław Tesluk (1532-1604) was a merchant and landowner from the city of Kraków, who was involved in the trade of textiles and other goods with neighboring countries.
In the 18th century, a branch of the Tesluk family settled in the region of Galicia, which was then part of the Austrian Empire. One prominent member of this branch was Franciszek Tesluk (1755-1831), a Catholic priest and theologian who served as the rector of the University of Lviv.
The 19th century saw the Tesluk name spread further across Europe, with some individuals emigrating to other countries. One notable figure was Jan Tesluk (1842-1916), a Polish-born engineer who worked on various railway projects in Germany and Russia.
Another individual of note was Kazimierz Tesluk (1879-1949), a Polish-born artist and painter who spent much of his career in France and is known for his Impressionist-style landscapes and portraits.
While the surname Tesluk is not particularly common today, it continues to be found in various parts of Poland, as well as among Polish diaspora communities around the world. The name remains a testament to the rich cultural heritage and diverse occupational traditions of Poland's past.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Tesluk
Among Census respondents with the surname Tesluk, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.5%) and Black (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Tesluk 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 Tesluk surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White95.6% · 108
- Two or more races3.5% · 4
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Tesluk
Tesluk 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
#125,282
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 137
+26 bearers (+23.4%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Up 13,459 places
2020
#147,221
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
-24 bearers (-17.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 21,939 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #138,741 | 111 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #125,282 | 137 | 0.05 | +26 bearers (+23.4%) | Up 13,459 places |
| 2020 | #147,221 | 113 | 0.04 | -24 bearers (-17.5%) | Down 21,939 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 Tesluk 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 | #125,282 | #147,221 | -17.5% |
| Count | 137 | 113 | -17.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.04 | -24.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Tesluk bearers went from 137 to 113 (-17.5% change). The surname moved down 21,939 positions in the national ranking, going from #125,282 to #147,221.
FAQ
Tesluk surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Tesluk?
Name Census estimates that about 130 living Americans carry the surname Tesluk. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,636,572 residents.
How common is Tesluk?
Tesluk ranks #147,221 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 113 people with the surname Tesluk. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (130), 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 Tesluk.
Has Tesluk become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Tesluk went from 137 recorded bearers to 113. That is a decrease of 24 (-17.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #125,282 to #147,221.
What does the Census say about the background of Tesluk?
Among Census respondents with the surname Tesluk, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.5%) and Black (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 Tesluk in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.6% (108 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Tesluk appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (95.6%), Two or More Races (3.5%), Black (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 Tesluk (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 Tesluk mean?
A surname potentially derived from a personal name or nickname related to a metal worker. 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 Tesluk (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 Tesluk?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.