Yezak last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Yezak

A Slavic surname possibly derived from the personal name Ezekiel or Ezekias.

Yezak, 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 Yezak surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Yezak in America

Yezak is the 130610th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Yezak surname appeared 130 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Yezak.

We can also compare 2010 data for Yezak 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 130610 125639 3.88%
Count 130 126 3.13%
Proportion per 100k 0.04 0.05 -22.22%

The history of the last name Yezak

The surname Yezak is believed to have Eastern European origins, with strong ties to Polish and Czech regions. The name is believed to have first appeared in these areas during the Late Middle Ages, a period spanning from the 13th to the 16th century. The areas now known as Poland and the Czech Republic were a cultural melting pot during this time, which often led to the creation of surnames that were derived from occupations, locations, or characteristics of individuals.

Yezak may be derived from a root word related to yew trees, known as "jeż" in Polish or "jeř" in Czech, which were commonly found in these regions and often tied to local place names or family estates. Similarly, older spellings of the surname in historical records include variations such as Jezák or Jezak, reflecting local linguistic influences.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name dates back to the 15th century in records from the Kingdom of Bohemia, which is part of modern-day Czech Republic. A manuscript from 1484 mentions a Marian Jezak as a landowner in a small village near Prague. This underscores the name's historical association with this geographic region and its presence in early civil documentation.

A notable figure bearing this surname is Jan Yezak, born in 1569, who was a well-documented tradesman in Kraków, Poland. Historical records indicate he was involved in the local timber trade, which aligns with the possible derivation of the name from yew trees. His business dealings and presence in municipal records demonstrate the establishment of the Yezak name within the commercial class of this vibrant city.

By the 17th century, the surname had spread to various parts of Central Europe, including Hungary and Austria. One significant individual from this period is András Yezak, born in 1621, who served in the Hungarian military during the Ottoman wars and became a distinguished figure, eventually earning an estate in modern-day Slovakia.

In the 19th century, the surname appears in emigration records as many family members left Eastern Europe for the United States and Canada. One such emigrant was Pavel Yezak, born in 1834 in Poland, who settled in Pennsylvania in the 1850s. His descendants became well-known in local mining communities.

A more recent historical figure is Vladimír Yezák, born in 1888 in the Czech lands, who became a notable figure in the Bohemian National Alliance advocating for Czech independence. He played a crucial role in the early 20th-century nationalist movements and is remembered in several historical writings for his contributions to Czech society.

Throughout the centuries, the surname Yezak has evolved in spelling and pronunciation, but it maintains a rich heritage tied to the Eastern European regions of Poland and the Czech Republic. The individuals who have carried this name throughout history illustrate its deep cultural and societal roots, enduring through varying times of prosperity and hardship.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Yezak

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

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 Yezak was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 93.08% 121
Non-Hispanic Black Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 0.00% 0
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 5.38% 7
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 0.00% 0
Hispanic Origin (S)% (S)

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 Yezak has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 93.08% 91.27% 1.96%
Black (S)% 0.00% (S)%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 5.38% 3.97% 30.16%
Two or More Races 0.00% (S)% (S)%
Hispanic (S)% (S)% (S)%

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 Yezak was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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"Yezak last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on November 22, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/yezak-surname-popularity/.

"Yezak last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/yezak-surname-popularity/. Accessed 22 November, 2024

Yezak last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/yezak-surname-popularity/.

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