2000
#12,654
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,242
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.83
Rare Last name
Wasilewski
Derived from a Polish place name meaning "Vasily's settlement," referring to an individual who lived in such a place.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,368 Americans carry the last name Wasilewski. That puts it at #13,983 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.69 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 144,744 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Wasilewski 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Wasilewski with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.4K
1 in 144,744
Census rank
#13,983
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,065 bearers of the surname Wasilewski in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.69 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13983rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Wasilewski, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.1%) and Hispanic (1.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Wasilewski
The surname Wasilewski is of Polish origin, deriving from the personal name Wasilij or Vasil. This name is a Slavic form of the Greek name Basileios, meaning "kingly" or "royal." The name likely emerged in the early medieval period in the regions that now comprise modern-day Poland.
Wasilewski is a patronymic surname, meaning it originated as a way to identify someone as the son or descendant of a person named Wasilij or Vasil. The suffix "-ewski" is a common Polish patronymic ending, indicating the name's Polish roots.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Wasilewski can be found in the Księgi Metrykalne, or Parish Records, of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in the 16th century. These records document the births, marriages, and deaths of individuals with the surname Wasilewski in various towns and villages across the region.
In the 17th century, a notable figure bearing the name Wasilewski was Andrzej Wasilewski (1635-1711), a Polish nobleman and military commander who fought in the Polish-Ottoman Wars. He was renowned for his bravery and leadership in battles against the Ottoman Empire.
Another historically significant individual with the surname Wasilewski was Jan Wasilewski (1876-1928), a Polish politician and economist. He served as the Minister of Finance in the Second Polish Republic and played a crucial role in establishing the country's economic policies after World War I.
Mieczysław Wasilewski (1881-1964) was a Polish linguist and Slavist who made significant contributions to the study of the Polish language and its dialects. He published numerous works on the subject and served as a professor at the University of Warsaw.
In the 20th century, Wanda Wasilewska (1905-1964) was a prominent Polish writer and communist activist. She was an advocate for women's rights and social justice and wrote novels that explored themes of gender inequality and class struggle.
Lastly, Jerzy Wasilewski (1942-2022) was a Polish film director and screenwriter known for his critically acclaimed movies that tackled social and political issues in Poland during the communist era. His films, such as "The Interrogation" and "The Bride," were widely acclaimed and earned him numerous awards and recognition.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Wasilewski
Among Census respondents with the surname Wasilewski, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.1%) and Hispanic (1.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Wasilewski 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 Wasilewski surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White95.1% · 1,963
- Two or more races2.1% · 44
- Hispanic or Latino1.7% · 36
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 16
- Black or African American0.2% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Wasilewski
Wasilewski 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
#13,736
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,204
-38 bearers (-1.7%)
Per 100,000 0.75
Rank movement Down 1,082 places
2020
#13,983
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,065
-139 bearers (-6.3%)
Per 100,000 0.69
Rank movement Down 247 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,654 | 2,242 | 0.83 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,736 | 2,204 | 0.75 | -38 bearers (-1.7%) | Down 1,082 places |
| 2020 | #13,983 | 2,065 | 0.69 | -139 bearers (-6.3%) | Down 247 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 Wasilewski 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 | #13,736 | #13,983 | -1.8% |
| Count | 2,204 | 2,065 | -6.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.75 | 0.69 | -7.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Wasilewski bearers went from 2,204 to 2,065 (-6.3% change). The surname moved down 247 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,736 to #13,983.
FAQ
Wasilewski surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Wasilewski?
Name Census estimates that about 2,368 living Americans carry the surname Wasilewski. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 144,744 residents.
How common is Wasilewski?
Wasilewski ranks #13,983 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.69 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,065 people with the surname Wasilewski. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,368), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.69 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.69 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Wasilewski.
Has Wasilewski become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Wasilewski went from 2,204 recorded bearers to 2,065. That is a decrease of 139 (-6.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #13,736 to #13,983.
What does the Census say about the background of Wasilewski?
Among Census respondents with the surname Wasilewski, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.1%) and Hispanic (1.7%). 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 Wasilewski in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.1% (1,963 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Wasilewski appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (95.1%), Two or More Races (2.1%), Hispanic (1.7%). 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 Wasilewski (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 Wasilewski mean?
Derived from a Polish place name meaning "Vasily's settlement," referring to an individual who lived in such a place. 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 Wasilewski (0.69 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 are called Wasilewski?
If you just want to know how many people have the last name Wasilewski, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.