2000
#54,522
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 354
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.13
Very Rare Last name
Warhol
A surname derived from the Polish word for "pot maker" or "pottery craftsman".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 357 Americans carry the last name Warhol. That puts it at #68,212 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.10 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 960,096 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Warhol 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
357
1 in 960,096
Census rank
#68,212
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
311
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 311 bearers of the surname Warhol in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.10 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 68212th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Warhol, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.9%) and Hispanic (1.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Warhol
The surname Warhol originated in eastern Slovakia, an area that was historically part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. It is believed to be derived from the Slovak word "varhol," meaning "mountain top" or "hillock," suggesting that the name may have been given to someone who lived on or near a hill.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in church records from the village of Medzilaborce in northeastern Slovakia, dating back to the late 18th century. The name was often spelled "Varhola" or "Varchola" in these early documents.
During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, many Slovaks emigrated to the United States, and it was during this period that the name Warhol likely took on its current spelling. The earliest known American with the surname Warhol was Andrej Varchola, who arrived in the United States from Slovakia in 1909 and anglicized his name to Andrew Warhol.
The most famous bearer of the Warhol name was undoubtedly Andy Warhol (1928-1987), the pioneering American artist and leading figure in the pop art movement. Born Andrew Warhola in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to Slovak immigrant parents, he later dropped the letter "a" from his surname.
Other notable individuals with the surname Warhol include:
1. John Warhol (1925-2010), brother of Andy Warhol and an accomplished artist and illustrator.
2. James Warhola (1927-1987), another brother of Andy Warhol and a successful children's book author and illustrator.
3. Paul Warhol (1917-2003), a third brother of Andy Warhol and a businessman.
4. Julia Warhola (1892-1972), Andy Warhol's mother, who was an artist and the inspiration for some of his works.
5. Pavol Varchola (1892-1982), a Slovak Catholic priest and theologian, who was distantly related to the Warhol family.
While the Warhol name has its roots in Slovakia, it has become internationally recognized due to the immense influence and legacy of Andy Warhol and his contributions to the art world.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Warhol
Among Census respondents with the surname Warhol, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.9%) and Hispanic (1.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Warhol 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 Warhol surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.2% · 290
- Two or more races2.9% · 9
- Hispanic or Latino1.9% · 6
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 3
- Black or African American0.6% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.3% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Warhol
Warhol 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
#61,123
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 329
-25 bearers (-7.1%)
Per 100,000 0.11
Rank movement Down 6,601 places
2020
#68,212
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 311
-18 bearers (-5.5%)
Per 100,000 0.10
Rank movement Down 7,089 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #54,522 | 354 | 0.13 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #61,123 | 329 | 0.11 | -25 bearers (-7.1%) | Down 6,601 places |
| 2020 | #68,212 | 311 | 0.10 | -18 bearers (-5.5%) | Down 7,089 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 Warhol 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 | #61,123 | #68,212 | -11.6% |
| Count | 329 | 311 | -5.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.11 | 0.10 | -5.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Warhol bearers went from 329 to 311 (-5.5% change). The surname moved down 7,089 positions in the national ranking, going from #61,123 to #68,212.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Warhol
FAQ
Warhol surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Warhol?
Name Census estimates that about 357 living Americans carry the surname Warhol. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 960,096 residents.
How common is Warhol?
Warhol ranks #68,212 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.10 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 311 people with the surname Warhol. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (357), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.1 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.10 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 Warhol.
Has Warhol become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Warhol went from 329 recorded bearers to 311. That is a decrease of 18 (-5.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #61,123 to #68,212.
What does the Census say about the background of Warhol?
Among Census respondents with the surname Warhol, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.9%) and Hispanic (1.9%). 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 Warhol in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.2% (290 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Warhol appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.2%), Two or More Races (2.9%), Hispanic (1.9%). 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 Warhol (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 Warhol mean?
A surname derived from the Polish word for "pot maker" or "pottery craftsman". 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 Warhol (0.10 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 Warhol?
Want to know how common the surname Warhol is? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.