2010
#152,628
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Tuka
A surname of uncertain origin possibly connected to the Turkish language or region.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 138 Americans carry the last name Tuka. That puts it at #142,049 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,483,727 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Tuka 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
138
1 in 2,483,727
Census rank
#142,049
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
120
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 120 bearers of the surname Tuka in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 142049th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Tuka, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.5%. The next largest groups are Black (15.0%) and Hispanic (6.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Tuka
The surname TUKA is believed to have originated in the Slavic regions of Eastern Europe, likely in present-day Poland, Ukraine, or Belarus, during the medieval period. It is thought to derive from the Slavic root word "tuk," which means "fat" or "corpulent," suggesting the name may have originally been a descriptive nickname or reference to a physical characteristic.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the TUKA surname can be found in the Polish village of Tukowa, which dates back to the 14th century. This place name is thought to be connected to the surname and may have served as its origin. Additionally, variations of the spelling, such as Tukov and Tukoff, have been documented in historical records from the region.
In the 16th century, the TUKA name appears in a Polish record of nobility, indicating that some families bearing the surname had achieved a certain level of status and distinction during that time period. This record also suggests that the name had begun to spread beyond its initial geographic origins.
Notable individuals with the TUKA surname throughout history include Vasil Tuka (1880-1949), a Slovakian politician and lawyer who served as the Prime Minister of the Slovak Republic during World War II. Another prominent figure was Bronisław Tuga Tuka (1907-1968), a Polish writer, journalist, and activist who played a significant role in the Polish resistance movement against Nazi occupation.
In the realm of arts and culture, the name is associated with Marija Tuka (1924-2009), a renowned Serbian painter and sculptor who gained recognition for her abstract expressionist works. Additionally, Mieczysław Tuka (1928-2016) was a Polish composer and educator who contributed significantly to the development of contemporary music in his home country.
The TUKA surname has also been documented in various historical records and manuscripts throughout Eastern Europe, including church records, census data, and land ownership documents, further solidifying its long-standing presence in the region.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Tuka
Among Census respondents with the surname Tuka, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.5%. The next largest groups are Black (15.0%) and Hispanic (6.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Tuka 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 Tuka surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White72.5% · 87
- Black or African American15.0% · 18
- Hispanic or Latino6.7% · 8
- Two or more races3.3% · 4
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.7% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Tuka
Tuka 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
#142,049
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 120
+13 bearers (+12.1%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 10,579 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #152,628 | 107 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #142,049 | 120 | 0.04 | +13 bearers (+12.1%) | Up 10,579 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 Tuka 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 | #152,628 | #142,049 | 6.9% |
| Count | 107 | 120 | 12.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | 0.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Tuka bearers went from 107 to 120 (+12.1% change). The surname moved up 10,579 positions in the national ranking, going from #152,628 to #142,049.
FAQ
Tuka surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Tuka?
Name Census estimates that about 138 living Americans carry the surname Tuka. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,483,727 residents.
How common is Tuka?
Tuka ranks #142,049 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 120 people with the surname Tuka. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (138), 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 Tuka.
Has Tuka become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Tuka went from 107 recorded bearers to 120. That is an increase of 13 (+12.1%). In the national ranking it rose from #152,628 to #142,049.
What does the Census say about the background of Tuka?
Among Census respondents with the surname Tuka, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.5%. The next largest groups are Black (15.0%) and Hispanic (6.7%). 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 Tuka in the 2020 Census, accounting for 72.5% (87 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Tuka appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (72.5%), Black (15.0%), Hispanic (6.7%). 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 Tuka (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 Tuka mean?
A surname of uncertain origin possibly connected to the Turkish language or region. 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 Tuka (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 Tuka?
Want to know how many Americans have the surname Tuka? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.