Data sources, methodology & privacy

Surnames

Surname frequencies and regional distribution come from the formerly publicly available database of the Czech Ministry of the Interior (archive, as of approx. 2011). The breakdown is to the level of municipalities with extended powers (ORP). The meaning and origin of surnames is produced by our own etymological analysis (a curated dictionary of the most common roots plus morphological rules for surname types and feminine forms); it is a general explanation based on typical patterns, not the documented origin of a specific family.

Given names

Total bearer counts and regional distribution of given names also come from the MV ČR database (~2011). Newborn popularity trends (rank: 2010–2011 and 2022–2025 full-year, 2016–2019 from January samples, 2020–2021 TOP 10 only) are from the open data of the Czech Statistical Office (ČSÚ).

Name popularity over time

The “Popularity over time” chart on each name’s page shows its rank among the most common newborn names in individual years (1 = most popular). The data comes from the open data of the ČSÚ, which however collected it in three different ways over time — the chart distinguishes these regimes:

• Full-year ranking (2010–2011 and 2022–2025) — rank across all children born during the whole year; a solid line.
• January sample (2016–2019) — in these years the ČSÚ published only the names of children born in January. This is a smaller, seasonal sample, so it is dashed in the chart and not fully comparable to the full-year points.
• TOP 10 only (2020–2021) — due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2021 Census, the ČSÚ did not process the full ranking; we added at least the first ten names. For less common names these two years are missing.

The years 2012–2015 are absent entirely — the ČSÚ either did not publish them (2013–2014) or only in an unstructured form. Rarer names may therefore show breaks in the series; popular names have a continuous line.

Regions and municipalities

The mapping of municipalities (ORP) to districts and regions is supplemented from public lists (Wikipedia). Map boundaries come from open geodata.

Across Europe

Surname families across languages (e.g. Kovář / Schmidt / Smith) are editorially compiled from well-known etymologies and lists of the most common surnames in each country.

Map methodology

Maps show relative representation — bearers per 10,000 inhabitants of a region (not absolute counts), so that large regions are not automatically "dark". “Characteristic surnames” are those where a large share of all bearers in Czechia live in that particular region.

Data protection

We work only with aggregated frequencies, never with data about specific individuals. The data is indicative and may contain inaccuracies due to its age and collection method.