2000
#126,400
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 125
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Zakin
A surname likely derived from the Arabic word "zaki" meaning pure or virtuous.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 132 Americans carry the last name Zakin. That puts it at #145,757 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,596,624 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Zakin 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
132
1 in 2,596,624
Census rank
#145,757
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
115
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 115 bearers of the surname Zakin in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 145757th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Zakin, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.0%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (2.6%) and Two or More Races (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Zakin
The surname Zakin finds its roots in Eastern Europe, particularly within regions that are today part of Poland and Russia. This surname first appeared in the records during the late Medieval period, around the 14th or 15th century. The areas most commonly associated with the surname include parts of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and the Russian Empire. The name is thought to be derived from the Polish-Jewish and Ashkenazi Jewish surname Zak, which is itself a shortened form or a variant of the Hebrew name Zecharya (Zacharias), meaning "God has remembered."
Historical records such as those from the Jewish communities within Kraków and Vilnius feature the surname Zakin. For instance, an old manuscript from the 1500s detailing the residents of Kraków lists a family with the surname Zakin, which indicates the name's longstanding presence in this region. Such documents exemplify the early recorded instances of this surname.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Zakin can be traced to Rabbi Moshe Zakin, a prominent Jewish scholar born in 1620 and active in the mid-17th century within what is modern-day Poland. Another notable individual is Yaakov Zakin, a merchant from Vilnius, whose name appears in tax records from the 1720s, marking his importance within the local Jewish community.
During the 18th century, the name continued to be prevalent, with figures like Benjamin Zakin, born in 1740, who served as a rabbi in a small shtetl near Warsaw. His writings and religious contributions are well-documented, shedding light on the cultural and religious life of Jewish communities in this period.
In the 19th century, the name became more widely recognized due to individuals like Alexander Zakin, born in 1818, who was a prominent figure in the Haskalah (Jewish Enlightenment) movement. Contributing significantly to Jewish intellectual life, Alexander Zakin's works were published in various periodicals of the era, bringing broader exposure to the surname.
By the early 20th century, the surname had crossed into other regions, primarily due to the migrations of Jewish families. One significant figure during this period is Isaac Zakin, born in 1882, who was a noted mathematician and academic in the Russian Empire. His contributions to the field of algebra were well-regarded, and his publications were influential in academic circles of his time.
The surname Zakin has thus traversed centuries, geography, and various facets of society, from religious scholars to intellectuals, maintaining a notable presence from its origins in Eastern Europe to its spread across the world.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Zakin
Among Census respondents with the surname Zakin, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.0%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (2.6%) and Two or More Races (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Zakin 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 Zakin surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.0% · 107
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.6% · 3
- Two or more races2.6% · 3
- Hispanic or Latino1.7% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Zakin
Zakin 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
#134,712
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 125
+0 bearers (+0.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 8,312 places
2020
#145,757
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
-10 bearers (-8.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 11,045 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #126,400 | 125 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #134,712 | 125 | 0.04 | +0 bearers (+0.0%) | Down 8,312 places |
| 2020 | #145,757 | 115 | 0.04 | -10 bearers (-8.0%) | Down 11,045 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 Zakin 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 | #134,712 | #145,757 | -8.2% |
| Count | 125 | 115 | -8.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -3.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Zakin bearers went from 125 to 115 (-8.0% change). The surname moved down 11,045 positions in the national ranking, going from #134,712 to #145,757.
FAQ
Zakin surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Zakin?
Name Census estimates that about 132 living Americans carry the surname Zakin. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,596,624 residents.
How common is Zakin?
Zakin ranks #145,757 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 115 people with the surname Zakin. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (132), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Zakin.
Has Zakin become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Zakin went from 125 recorded bearers to 115. That is a decrease of 10 (-8.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #134,712 to #145,757.
What does the Census say about the background of Zakin?
Among Census respondents with the surname Zakin, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.0%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (2.6%) and Two or More Races (2.6%). 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 Zakin in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.0% (107 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Zakin appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.0%), Asian/Pacific Islander (2.6%), Two or More Races (2.6%). 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 Zakin (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 Zakin mean?
A surname likely derived from the Arabic word "zaki" meaning pure or virtuous. 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 Zakin (0.04 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 Zakin?
If you just want to know how many Americans have the surname Zakin, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.