2000
#140,756
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 109
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Uwanawich
A surname of Eastern European origin, possibly Polish or Ukrainian.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 132 Americans carry the last name Uwanawich. 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 Uwanawich 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 Uwanawich 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 Uwanawich, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (1.7%) and Black (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Uwanawich
The surname UWANAWICH has its origins in the ancient kingdom of Bohemia, which is now part of the modern-day Czech Republic. The name can be traced back to the 9th century and is believed to have been derived from the Old Czech words "uvan" (meaning "one who is esteemed") and "wich" (a suffix indicating a place of origin or residence).
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Codex Gigas, also known as the Devil's Bible, a massive 13th-century manuscript written by a Benedictine monk named Herman the Recluse. The manuscript mentions a landowner named Uwanawich von Prachatic, who lived in the town of Prachatice in the present-day South Bohemian region of the Czech Republic.
Another notable historical figure bearing this surname was Jaroslav Uwanawich, a 14th-century Czech nobleman and military commander who fought in the Hussite Wars. He was born in 1375 and died in 1452, leaving a significant legacy as a skilled strategist and defender of the Bohemian crown.
In the 16th century, the name appears in the records of the University of Prague, where a scholar named Jan Uwanawich served as a professor of philosophy from 1543 to 1567. He was highly regarded for his contributions to the study of ethics and logic.
Moving forward to the 17th century, a prominent figure bearing this surname was Magdalena Uwanawich, a renowned artist from the town of Kutná Hora, known for her intricate woodcarvings and religious sculptures. She was born in 1625 and died in 1698, leaving behind a rich artistic legacy that can still be appreciated in churches and museums across the Czech Republic.
In more recent times, Tomáš Uwanawich was a 19th-century Czech writer and poet who was born in 1832 and died in 1891. His works, which often explored themes of nature and the rural landscapes of Bohemia, were widely acclaimed and helped to preserve the cultural heritage of the region.
While the UWANAWICH surname is relatively uncommon today, it has a rich and diverse history spanning several centuries, with notable individuals who have left their mark in fields ranging from military leadership and academia to art and literature.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Uwanawich
Among Census respondents with the surname Uwanawich, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (1.7%) and Black (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Uwanawich 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 Uwanawich surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White96.5% · 111
- Two or more races1.7% · 2
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Uwanawich
Uwanawich 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
#116,829
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 149
+40 bearers (+36.7%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Up 23,927 places
2020
#145,757
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
-34 bearers (-22.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 28,928 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #140,756 | 109 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #116,829 | 149 | 0.05 | +40 bearers (+36.7%) | Up 23,927 places |
| 2020 | #145,757 | 115 | 0.04 | -34 bearers (-22.8%) | Down 28,928 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 Uwanawich 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 | #116,829 | #145,757 | -24.8% |
| Count | 149 | 115 | -22.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.04 | -23.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Uwanawich bearers went from 149 to 115 (-22.8% change). The surname moved down 28,928 positions in the national ranking, going from #116,829 to #145,757.
FAQ
Uwanawich surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Uwanawich?
Name Census estimates that about 132 living Americans carry the surname Uwanawich. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,596,624 residents.
How common is Uwanawich?
Uwanawich 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 Uwanawich. 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 Uwanawich.
Has Uwanawich become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Uwanawich went from 149 recorded bearers to 115. That is a decrease of 34 (-22.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #116,829 to #145,757.
What does the Census say about the background of Uwanawich?
Among Census respondents with the surname Uwanawich, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (1.7%) 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 Uwanawich in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.5% (111 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Uwanawich appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (96.5%), Two or More Races (1.7%), 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 Uwanawich (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 Uwanawich mean?
A surname of Eastern European origin, possibly Polish or Ukrainian. 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 Uwanawich (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 have the last name Uwanawich?
Want to know how many people have the last name Uwanawich? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.