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

Afrin, 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 Afrin surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Afrin in America

Afrin is the 103181st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Afrin surname appeared 174 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 Afrin.

The history of the last name Afrin

The surname Afrin has its origins in the Middle East, specifically in the region that is now modern-day Syria and Iraq. The earliest recorded instances of this surname date back to the 12th century CE, during the time of the Ayyubid Dynasty that ruled over parts of the Levant and Mesopotamia.

One theory suggests that the name Afrin is derived from the Arabic word "afr," which means "dust" or "earth." This could indicate that the surname was originally borne by individuals who hailed from arid or desert-like regions. Another possible explanation is that the name is linked to the city of Afrin, located in northern Syria, which was an important settlement during the medieval period.

Historical records from the Ayyubid era, such as court chronicles and tax registers, contain mentions of individuals bearing the surname Afrin. One notable example is Majd al-Din Afrin, a scholar and poet who lived in Damascus during the late 12th century. His works, which include a collection of poetry and philosophical treatises, are preserved in various libraries and manuscript collections across the Middle East.

As the Ayyubid Dynasty gave way to the Mamluk Sultanate in the 13th century, the surname Afrin continued to be documented in various parts of the region. One prominent figure from this time was Shams al-Din Afrin, a renowned architect who oversaw the construction of several mosques and madrasas (Islamic schools) in Cairo and Damascus. His most famous work is the Madrasa of Sultan al-Nasir Muhammad, completed in 1307 CE.

In the 14th century, the Afrin surname also appeared in the records of the Ottoman Empire, which had begun to expand its territory into the Levant and Mesopotamia. One notable individual was Ali Afrin, a military commander who served under Sultan Mehmed II and participated in the conquest of Constantinople in 1453 CE.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, the Afrin surname can be found in various Ottoman administrative records and court chronicles, indicating that individuals with this name held positions of prominence within the empire. One such figure was Hasan Afrin, a high-ranking Ottoman official who served as the governor of Damascus in the early 17th century.

Over the centuries, the Afrin surname has also been associated with several notable scholars, writers, and religious figures from the region. One example is Muhammad al-Afrin, an 18th-century Islamic scholar and jurist from Aleppo, whose works on jurisprudence and theology were widely studied in the Middle East.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Afrin

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

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 Afrin 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.

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

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

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