Find out how popular the last name Witkowski is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Witkowski.

Witkowski, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Witkowski surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Witkowski in America

Witkowski is the 6058th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Witkowski surname appeared 5,662 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Witkowski.

We can also compare 2010 data for Witkowski to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Witkowski

The surname Witkowski originates from Poland and is derived from the Polish words "wit," meaning "welcome," and the suffix "-owski," indicating a place of origin. It is believed that the name first emerged in the late Middle Ages, around the 13th or 14th century, in the regions of Greater Poland and Kuyavia.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Witkowski can be found in the Tczew Land Records from 1570, which mentions a certain Jan Witkowski. Another notable early reference is in the Płock Voivodeship Records from 1616, where a Marcin Witkowski is listed.

The name is thought to be derived from a place name, possibly a village or town with a name like "Witkowo" or "Witkowice." These place names were likely derived from the personal name "Witek," a diminutive form of the name "Wit" or "Witold."

One of the earliest known bearers of the Witkowski name was Jan Witkowski, a Polish nobleman and military officer who served as a Captain in the Polish Army during the 17th century. He fought in the Polish-Swedish War (1626-1629) and was known for his bravery and loyalty to the Polish crown.

Another notable figure was Franciszek Witkowski (1744-1814), a Polish priest and author who wrote several religious works and served as a parish priest in the town of Kalisz.

In the 19th century, Józef Witkowski (1835-1892) was a Polish painter and art professor who taught at the Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków. He is known for his landscape paintings and portraits, which captured the beauty of the Polish countryside and its people.

Stanisław Witkowski (1865-1950) was a prominent Polish mathematician and logician who made significant contributions to the field of set theory. He was a professor at the University of Lviv and later at the University of Warsaw.

Towards the end of the 19th century, Władysław Witkowski (1874-1951) was a Polish historian and writer who specialized in the history of the Polish Reformation and the Polish Renaissance. He authored several books and articles on these topics and served as a professor at the University of Warsaw.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Witkowski

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Witkowski.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Witkowski was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Witkowski has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Witkowski was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Witkowski, please contact us.

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