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

Zukas, 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 Zukas surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Zukas in America

Zukas is the 50659th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Zukas surname appeared 412 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 Zukas.

We can also compare 2010 data for Zukas 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 Zukas

The surname Zukas traces its origins to Lithuania, dating back to the medieval period. The name derives from the Lithuanian word "žukas," which translates to "beetle" in English. This type of surname is often categorized as a nickname surname, originating either from a person’s occupation, characteristics, or a particular attribute, in this case, a direct reference to the insect. Historically, such nicknames may have been adopted for various reasons, perhaps alluding to an individual's industriousness or physical appearance.

The earliest records of the name Zukas can be found in Lithuanian church and census documents from the 16th and 17th centuries. These records are among the first written mentions, and they capture the name's prevalence in local rural communities. Variant spellings and similar surnames in nearby regions include Zukaitis or Žukauskas, commonly documented in older manuscripts. These variants exhibit the morphological tailing typical of Lithuanian surnames.

One of the earliest recorded individuals bearing the surname was Jonas Zukas, born around 1620 in the Vilnius region. Jonas was mentioned in local community registers, indicating his active participation in local agrarian society. Over the centuries, the name began spreading through various regions of the Baltic states, facilitated by migration and the shifting borders of the Lithuanian territory due to wars and political changes.

In the late 19th century, another notable figure was Antanas Zukas, born in 1853 in Kaunas. Antanas became known for his involvement in the Lithuanian National Revival, a period when the cultural and linguistic identity of Lithuania was avidly promoted. He was a schoolteacher and a small-scale publisher of Lithuanian texts, contributing to the preservation and promotion of the Lithuanian language under Russian rule, until his death in 1911.

A more contemporary historical figure is Martynas Zukas, a Lithuanian botanist born in 1901. Martynas' contributions to the field of botany during the first half of the 20th century, including numerous publications on the flora of the Baltic region, have left a lasting legacy on the scientific community. He worked primarily between the World Wars and continued his research until his passing in 1962.

From the Lithuanian diaspora to the United States, Joseph Zukas, born in 1925, is another individual of note. He served prominently as a writer and community organizer in the Lithuanian-American community, documenting the experiences of Lithuanian immigrants and contributing to the cultural preservation of their history through several published memoirs and historical accounts. Joseph's work remained influential until his death in 1998.

Lastly, during the mid-20th century, we see figures such as Vytautas Zukas, born in 1930, who became known in the political arena. Vytautas held various positions within the local government of Vilnius and was actively involved in the political changes leading to Lithuanian independence in 1990. Throughout his career up until his passing in 2005, Vytautas championed many social reforms and was instrumental in the political discourse post-independence.

These historical records and accounts demonstrate how the surname Zukas has been carried through centuries, marking the contributions of various individuals and reflecting the historical transitions within Lithuania and the broader Baltic region.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Zukas

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

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

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

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