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

Zaremba, 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 Zaremba surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Zaremba in America

Zaremba is the 12948th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Zaremba surname appeared 2,372 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Zaremba.

We can also compare 2010 data for Zaremba 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 Zaremba

The surname Zaremba is of Polish origin, with its roots tracing back to the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Old Polish word "zarembiec," which means "to enclose" or "to fortify." This suggests that the name may have initially been given to someone who lived near or was associated with a fortified settlement or enclosure.

The earliest recorded instances of the surname Zaremba can be found in historical documents from the 14th century in the region of Lesser Poland, particularly in the areas around the city of Krakow. Some of the earliest known bearers of this name include Jan Zaremba, a landowner mentioned in a deed from 1387, and Mikołaj Zaremba, a merchant who lived in Krakow in the late 15th century.

The Zaremba name also appears in some medieval manuscripts and chronicles, such as the "Księga Henrykowska" (Henryków Book), a 13th-century cartulary from the Cistercian monastery in Henryków, Lower Silesia. This suggests that the name was already well-established in various parts of Poland during that period.

Over the centuries, variations in the spelling of the name emerged, including Zaremba, Zarembie, Zarembiewski, and Zarębski. Some of these variations may have been influenced by the locations where different branches of the Zaremba family settled or by the Polish practice of adding suffixes to surnames to indicate family relationships or geographic origins.

Notable individuals who bore the Zaremba surname include:

1. Franciszek Zaremba (1589-1667), a Polish nobleman and military commander who fought in the Smolensk War and the Polish-Muscovite War.
2. Stanisław Zaremba (1863-1942), a Polish mathematician and academic who made significant contributions to the field of partial differential equations.
3. Jan Zaremba (1909-1986), a Polish actor and theater director who performed in numerous plays and films during the interwar and post-World War II periods.
4. Zygmunt Zaremba (1895-1967), a Polish lawyer and politician who served as the Minister of Justice in the Polish government-in-exile during World War II.
5. Aleksander Zaremba (1904-1979), a Polish painter and graphic artist known for his Expressionist and Surrealist works.

While the Zaremba surname is most commonly associated with Poland, it has also been found in other Slavic countries and communities due to migration and intermarriage over the centuries.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Zaremba

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

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

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

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