2000
#33,425
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 644
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.24
Rare Last name
Abdullahi
A patronymic surname meaning "servant of Allah" in Arabic, referring to a person's devotion to God.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,477 Americans carry the last name Abdullahi. That puts it at #6,794 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.60 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 62,581 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Abdullahi 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Abdullahi with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
5.5K
1 in 62,581
Census rank
#6,794
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,776 bearers of the surname Abdullahi in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.60 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6794th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Abdullahi, the largest self-reported group is Black at 96.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (1.4%) and White (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Abdullahi
The surname "ABDULLAHI" is an Arabic name that has its origins in the Middle East, specifically in Saudi Arabia and Yemen. It is derived from the Arabic name "Abdullah," which means "servant of Allah" or "servant of God." The name's roots can be traced back to the 7th century CE, during the time of the Prophet Muhammad and the establishment of Islam.
The name "ABDULLAHI" is a patronymic form of "Abdullah," meaning "son of Abdullah." This naming convention was commonly used in Arabic culture to indicate lineage and family ties. It is believed that the earliest known records of the name date back to the 8th century CE, when it appeared in various Islamic manuscripts and historical documents.
One of the earliest known references to the name can be found in the "Kitab al-Aghani" (The Book of Songs), a renowned collection of Arabic poetry and biographical accounts compiled in the 9th century CE. The work mentions several individuals with the name "ABDULLAHI," suggesting its widespread usage during that time period.
Throughout history, there have been several notable figures who bore the surname "ABDULLAHI." One such individual was Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Zakariya al-Razi (865-925 CE), a Persian polymath and philosopher who made significant contributions to various fields, including medicine, chemistry, and physics. Another prominent figure was Al-Abdullahi (1057-1141 CE), a renowned Islamic scholar and theologian from Cordoba, Spain, who played a crucial role in the development of Islamic jurisprudence.
In the 13th century, there was a well-known Sufi mystic named Abdullahi al-Jili (1166-1240 CE), who hailed from the region of Jil, present-day Iraq. His teachings and writings on Sufism had a profound impact on Islamic spirituality and philosophy.
During the Ottoman Empire, there was a notable Ottoman statesman and Grand Vizier named Abdullahi Pasha (1546-1611 CE), who served under Sultan Murad III and played a pivotal role in the administration of the empire.
In more recent times, one of the most famous individuals with the surname "ABDULLAHI" was Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed (1934-2012), a Somali politician and military officer who served as the President of Somalia from 2004 to 2008.
The surname "ABDULLAHI" has been found in various regions of the Middle East, North Africa, and parts of Europe, particularly in areas with significant Muslim populations. It has also been associated with several place names and older spellings, such as "Abdullahi" in Arabic or "Abdullahi" in Turkish.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Abdullahi
Among Census respondents with the surname Abdullahi, the largest self-reported group is Black at 96.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (1.4%) and White (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Abdullahi 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 Abdullahi surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American96.3% · 4,597
- Two or more races1.4% · 68
- White0.9% · 45
- Hispanic or Latino0.9% · 41
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 24
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Abdullahi
Abdullahi 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
#13,091
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,343
+1,699 bearers (+263.8%)
Per 100,000 0.79
Rank movement Up 20,334 places
2020
#6,794
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,776
+2,433 bearers (+103.8%)
Per 100,000 1.60
Rank movement Up 6,297 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #33,425 | 644 | 0.24 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,091 | 2,343 | 0.79 | +1,699 bearers (+263.8%) | Up 20,334 places |
| 2020 | #6,794 | 4,776 | 1.60 | +2,433 bearers (+103.8%) | Up 6,297 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 Abdullahi 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 | #13,091 | #6,794 | 48.1% |
| Count | 2,343 | 4,776 | 103.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.79 | 1.60 | 102.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Abdullahi bearers went from 2,343 to 4,776 (+103.8% change). The surname moved up 6,297 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,091 to #6,794.
FAQ
Abdullahi surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Abdullahi?
Name Census estimates that about 5,477 living Americans carry the surname Abdullahi. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 62,581 residents.
How common is Abdullahi?
Abdullahi ranks #6,794 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.60 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 4,776 people with the surname Abdullahi. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,477), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.6 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.60 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Abdullahi.
Has Abdullahi become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Abdullahi went from 2,343 recorded bearers to 4,776. That is an increase of 2,433 (+103.8%). In the national ranking it rose from #13,091 to #6,794.
What does the Census say about the background of Abdullahi?
Among Census respondents with the surname Abdullahi, the largest self-reported group is Black at 96.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (1.4%) and White (0.9%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Abdullahi in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.3% (4,597 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Abdullahi appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (96.3%), Two or More Races (1.4%), White (0.9%). 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 Abdullahi (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 Abdullahi mean?
A patronymic surname meaning "servant of Allah" in Arabic, referring to a person's devotion to God. 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 Abdullahi (1.60 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 many people share the surname Abdullahi?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.