2000
#103,706
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 160
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.06
Very Rare Last name
Zachos
A Greek surname likely derived from the personal name Zacharias, meaning "remembered by God".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 178 Americans carry the last name Zachos. That puts it at #118,445 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.05 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,925,586 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Zachos 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
178
1 in 1,925,586
Census rank
#118,445
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
155
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 155 bearers of the surname Zachos in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.05 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 118445th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Zachos, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.2%) and Hispanic (3.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Zachos
The surname Zachos has its origins in Greece, a country with a rich and storied history going back to the ancient period. The name likely hails from regions within Greece such as Thessaly or Epirus, which have historically been inhabited by Greek-speaking populations. The surname itself is derived from older Greek words or names, with "Zachos" possibly being a diminutive or nickname form of the more ancient Greek name Zacharias, which itself means "God has remembered."
The surname Zachos first appeared in historical records during the Byzantine period, a time when surnames began to be more widely used as a means of distinguishing individuals. Manuscripts from this era occasionally make note of individuals with the surname Zachos, usually in the context of military or civic duties. One such record from the 12th century mentions a Byzantine official by the name of Niketas Zachos, highlighting its presence within the administrative echelons of Byzantine society.
As the centuries progressed, the surname continued to appear in various forms of documentation. In the 15th century, an archive from a Venetian-controlled port in Greece records a trader named Demetrios Zachos, indicating the name's use among merchants and the trading class. This period also saw the name appear in tax records and local census documents, which were meticulously kept by the ruling Ottoman Empire following its conquest of Byzantine territories.
Moving into the 18th century, the name Zachos was relatively well established within Greek-speaking regions. In 1752, Christos Zachos, a prominent figure in the local politics of Thessaly, is documented as having played a key role in negotiating trade agreements. Later, in the 19th century, another significant figure, Panagiotis Zachos, born in 1820 and died in 1898, emerged as a notable educator and scholar who contributed extensively to Greek literature and education reforms during the period of the Greek War of Independence and subsequent formation of modern Greece.
The 20th century saw the migration of many Greek families, including those with the surname Zachos, to other parts of the world, particularly the United States and Australia, following the Greek diaspora. However, long before this widespread movement, a documented emigrant named Alexandros Zachos left Greece in the late 19th century to settle in Alexandria, Egypt, where he made a name for himself as a successful businessman.
In terms of famous individuals with the surname, Georgios Zachos, born in 1905 and died in 1973, was a well-known Greek mathematician who contributed to the field of mathematical analysis and played a crucial role in establishing mathematical societies in Greece. Another contemporary figure, Maria Zachos, who lived from 1912 to 1987, was a prominent Greek-American activist, known for her efforts in promoting Greek culture and heritage in the United States.
Ultimately, the surname Zachos has a long and varied history that reflects the broader socio-political changes within Greece and the Greek-speaking world. It is a name that has been associated with various professions, from scholars and traders to officials and activists, and continues to be recognized and respected both in its homeland and abroad.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Zachos
Among Census respondents with the surname Zachos, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.2%) and Hispanic (3.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Zachos 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 Zachos surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.0% · 138
- Two or more races5.2% · 8
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 5
- Black or African American1.9% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Zachos
Zachos 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
#108,199
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 164
+4 bearers (+2.5%)
Per 100,000 0.06
Rank movement Down 4,493 places
2020
#118,445
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 155
-9 bearers (-5.5%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Down 10,246 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #103,706 | 160 | 0.06 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #108,199 | 164 | 0.06 | +4 bearers (+2.5%) | Down 4,493 places |
| 2020 | #118,445 | 155 | 0.05 | -9 bearers (-5.5%) | Down 10,246 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 Zachos 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 | #108,199 | #118,445 | -9.5% |
| Count | 164 | 155 | -5.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.06 | 0.05 | -13.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Zachos bearers went from 164 to 155 (-5.5% change). The surname moved down 10,246 positions in the national ranking, going from #108,199 to #118,445.
FAQ
Zachos surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Zachos?
Name Census estimates that about 178 living Americans carry the surname Zachos. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,925,586 residents.
How common is Zachos?
Zachos ranks #118,445 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.05 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 155 people with the surname Zachos. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (178), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.05 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.05 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 Zachos.
Has Zachos become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Zachos went from 164 recorded bearers to 155. That is a decrease of 9 (-5.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #108,199 to #118,445.
What does the Census say about the background of Zachos?
Among Census respondents with the surname Zachos, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.2%) and Hispanic (3.2%). 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 Zachos in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.0% (138 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Zachos appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.0%), Two or More Races (5.2%), Hispanic (3.2%). 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 Zachos (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 Zachos mean?
A Greek surname likely derived from the personal name Zacharias, meaning "remembered by God". 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 Zachos (0.05 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 Americans have the surname Zachos?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.