2010
#151,532
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 108
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Abulaban
An Arabic occupational surname referring to a seller or manufacturer of milk or dairy products.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 195 Americans carry the last name Abulaban. That puts it at #110,517 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.06 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,757,715 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Abulaban 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.
Bearers in the US
195
1 in 1,757,715
Census rank
#110,517
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
170
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 170 bearers of the surname Abulaban in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.06 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 110517th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Abulaban, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.1%) and Hispanic (2.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Abulaban
The surname Abulaban has its origins in the Arabic language and is believed to have originated in the Middle East, specifically in the regions that are now modern-day Lebanon, Syria, and Palestine. The name can be traced back to the 7th century AD, during the early years of the Islamic caliphates.
Abulaban is derived from the combination of two Arabic words: "Abu," meaning "father of," and "Laban," which is a personal name or nickname. The name Laban itself has its roots in the Semitic languages and is believed to have meant "white" or "milky." This suggests that the surname Abulaban may have initially been a descriptive name used to identify someone with a fair complexion or a connection to dairy products or livestock.
The earliest recorded instances of the name Abulaban can be found in various medieval Arabic manuscripts and chronicles, particularly those documenting the lives and genealogies of prominent Arab families and scholars. One notable figure was Abu Laban al-Dimashqi, a renowned 10th-century Arab philosopher and mathematician from Damascus, who lived from 915 to 997 AD.
In the 12th century, the name Abulaban appeared in the records of the Crusades, as some individuals with this surname were mentioned as residents of cities and villages in the Levant region during the period of European occupation. One such example is Yahya Abulaban, a merchant from Acre (present-day Israel) who traded with Italian merchants in the late 12th century.
During the Ottoman Empire's rule over the Middle East from the 16th to the early 20th centuries, the Abulaban surname was found among Arab families living in various parts of the empire, including modern-day Lebanon, Syria, and Palestine. One prominent individual was Ismail Abulaban, a 17th-century scholar and poet from Tripoli, Lebanon, who wrote extensively on Arabic literature and Islamic theology.
In the 19th century, the Abulaban surname was also recorded in parts of North Africa, particularly in Algeria, where some families of Arab descent had settled during the Ottoman period. One notable figure was Ahmed Abulaban, an Algerian scholar and educator born in 1835, who played a significant role in promoting Arabic education and preserving Islamic cultural heritage in the region.
As people with the Abulaban surname migrated and settled in various parts of the world, the name has continued to be used by their descendants, carrying the cultural and historical legacy of its Arabic origins.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Abulaban
Among Census respondents with the surname Abulaban, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.1%) and Hispanic (2.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Abulaban 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 Abulaban surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.2% · 155
- Two or more races4.1% · 7
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 5
- Black or African American1.8% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Abulaban
Abulaban appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#110,517
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 170
+62 bearers (+57.4%)
Per 100,000 0.06
Rank movement Up 41,015 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #151,532 | 108 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #110,517 | 170 | 0.06 | +62 bearers (+57.4%) | Up 41,015 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 Abulaban 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 | #151,532 | #110,517 | 27.1% |
| Count | 108 | 170 | 57.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.06 | 42.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Abulaban bearers went from 108 to 170 (+57.4% change). The surname moved up 41,015 positions in the national ranking, going from #151,532 to #110,517.
FAQ
Abulaban surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Abulaban?
Name Census estimates that about 195 living Americans carry the surname Abulaban. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,757,715 residents.
How common is Abulaban?
Abulaban ranks #110,517 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.06 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 170 people with the surname Abulaban. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (195), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.06 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.06 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Abulaban.
Has Abulaban become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Abulaban went from 108 recorded bearers to 170. That is an increase of 62 (+57.4%). In the national ranking it rose from #151,532 to #110,517.
What does the Census say about the background of Abulaban?
Among Census respondents with the surname Abulaban, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.1%) and Hispanic (2.9%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Abulaban in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.2% (155 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Abulaban appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.2%), Two or More Races (4.1%), Hispanic (2.9%). 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 Abulaban (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 Abulaban mean?
An Arabic occupational surname referring to a seller or manufacturer of milk or dairy products. 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 Abulaban (0.06 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 Abulaban?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.