Explore the Family Name Bernas

The meaning of Bernas

1. Polish (mainly Bernaś) and Czech (Bernáš): from a derivative of the personal name Bernard. 2. German and French: from a derivative of an ancient Germanic personal name formed with ber(n) ‘bear’, e.g. Bernhard. 3. Americanized form of Croatian Brnas: from an old vernacular pet form of the personal name Bernard. Some characteristic forenames: German Egon, Kurt, Otto.

Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.

How common is the last name Bernas in the United States?

Based on data from the Decennial U.S. Census, the popularity of the surname Bernas has experienced slight changes between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, the name was ranked 32,529 in terms of popularity, and this decreased slightly to 33,596 in 2010, reflecting a change of -3.28%. Despite this drop in rank, the actual count of people with this surname increased from 666 to 678 (a 1.8% growth) over the same period. However, when considering the proportion per 100,000 people, the presence of the Bernas surname reduced by 8.0%, dropping from 0.25 to 0.23.

20002010Change
Rank#32,529#33,596-3.28%
Count6666781.8%
Proportion per 100k0.250.23-8%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Bernas

Looking at ethnicity, the Decennial U.S. Census data reveals some shifts in the ethnic identity associated with the Bernas surname between 2000 and 2010. The most significant increase was seen in those identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander, which grew by 26.04% from 14.86% to 18.73%. Conversely, there was a decrease in those identifying as White, falling by 5.34% from 82.58% to 78.17%. Those identifying as Hispanic also fell by 28.48% from 1.65% to 1.18%. For the first time in 2010, 1.77% of individuals with the Bernas surname identified as belonging to two or more races. The proportions of those identifying as Black, American Indian, and Alaskan Native remained unchanged.

20002010Change
White82.58%78.17%-5.34%
Asian/Pacific Islander14.86%18.73%26.04%
Two or More Races0%1.77%0%
Hispanic1.65%1.18%-28.48%
Black0%0%0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0%0%0%