2000
#148,244
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Vardakis
A Greek surname likely derived from a place name referring to an area or town.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 112 Americans carry the last name Vardakis. That puts it at #156,269 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 3,060,307 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Vardakis 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
112
1 in 3,060,307
Census rank
#156,269
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
98
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 98 bearers of the surname Vardakis in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 156269th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Vardakis, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Vardakis
The surname Vardakis is of Greek origin, tracing its roots back to the late medieval period in the Byzantine Empire. It is believed to have originated from the Greek word "vardos," which means a small boat or skiff. This connection suggests that the name may have initially been associated with individuals who worked as boatmen or lived in coastal regions.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in a document from the 15th century, where a merchant named Georgios Vardakis is mentioned in a trade register from the city of Thessaloniki. This indicates that the name was already in use among the Greek population during the latter stages of the Byzantine era.
In the 16th century, the name appears in several ecclesiastical records from the island of Crete, which was under Venetian rule at the time. These records mention individuals with the surname Vardakis serving as priests or monks in various monasteries across the island.
During the Ottoman period, the name can be found in tax registers and census documents from various regions of Greece, particularly in the Peloponnese and the islands of the Aegean Sea. This suggests that the Vardakis family had spread across different parts of the Greek-speaking world by this point.
One notable figure bearing the Vardakis surname was Ioannis Vardakis, a Greek scholar and theologian who lived in the 17th century. He authored several works on religious philosophy and is known for his contributions to the intellectual life of the Greek Orthodox Church during that time.
Another individual of historical significance was Konstantinos Vardakis, a military leader who fought in the Greek War of Independence against the Ottoman Empire in the early 19th century. He played a crucial role in several battles and is remembered as a hero of the Greek revolutionary struggle.
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the name Vardakis can be found among Greek immigrants who settled in various parts of the world, including the United States, Australia, and South Africa. One prominent example is Georgios Vardakis, a Greek-American businessman and philanthropist who established successful shipping and trading companies in New York City in the early 1900s.
Throughout its long history, the Vardakis surname has been associated with individuals from various walks of life, including merchants, scholars, military figures, and entrepreneurs. Its origins can be traced back to the Byzantine era, and it has since spread across the Greek diaspora, carrying the cultural and historical legacy of the Greek people.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Vardakis
Among Census respondents with the surname Vardakis, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Vardakis 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 Vardakis surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.9% · 91
- Hispanic or Latino7.1% · 7
Timeline
Historical Census data for Vardakis
Vardakis 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
#139,228
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 120
+18 bearers (+17.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 9,016 places
2020
#156,269
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 98
-22 bearers (-18.3%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 17,041 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #148,244 | 102 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #139,228 | 120 | 0.04 | +18 bearers (+17.6%) | Up 9,016 places |
| 2020 | #156,269 | 98 | 0.03 | -22 bearers (-18.3%) | Down 17,041 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 Vardakis 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 | #139,228 | #156,269 | -12.2% |
| Count | 120 | 98 | -18.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -18.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Vardakis bearers went from 120 to 98 (-18.3% change). The surname moved down 17,041 positions in the national ranking, going from #139,228 to #156,269.
FAQ
Vardakis surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Vardakis?
Name Census estimates that about 112 living Americans carry the surname Vardakis. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 3,060,307 residents.
How common is Vardakis?
Vardakis ranks #156,269 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 98 people with the surname Vardakis. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (112), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Vardakis.
Has Vardakis become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Vardakis went from 120 recorded bearers to 98. That is a decrease of 22 (-18.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #139,228 to #156,269.
What does the Census say about the background of Vardakis?
Among Census respondents with the surname Vardakis, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.1%). 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 Vardakis in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.9% (91 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Vardakis appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.9%), Hispanic (7.1%). 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 Vardakis (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 Vardakis mean?
A Greek surname likely derived from a place name referring to an area or town. 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 Vardakis (0.03 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 Vardakis?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people are called Vardakis at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.