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

Aryan, 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 Aryan surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Aryan in America

Aryan is the 69170th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Aryan surname appeared 284 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 Aryan.

We can also compare 2010 data for Aryan to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Aryan

The surname "Aryan" is believed to have originated in ancient Persia (modern-day Iran) during the early centuries of the first millennium BCE. It is derived from the Old Persian word "arya," which means "noble" or "honorable." The name was initially used to refer to the Indo-Iranian people who migrated from Central Asia into the Indian subcontinent and the Iranian Plateau.

In ancient Sanskrit texts, such as the Rigveda and the Avesta, the term "Aryan" was used to describe the dominant ethnic group in the region. It was associated with the predominant cultural and linguistic traditions of the time. The name gained prominence as the Persian Empire expanded, and the term was adopted by various ruling dynasties and noble families.

One of the earliest known references to the name "Aryan" can be found in the Behistun Inscription, a multi-lingual inscription carved by the Persian King Darius the Great (circa 522-486 BCE) near the modern city of Kermanshah, Iran. This inscription mentions the term "arya" to describe the ethnic and linguistic identity of the Persian people.

During the medieval period, the name "Aryan" was less commonly used as a surname but was still present in various regions of the Persian cultural sphere. Notable individuals who bore the surname include the Persian poet and scholar Abul-Qasim Firdausi Aryan (940-1020 CE), known for his epic masterpiece, the Shahnameh, and the Sufi mystic and poet Farid al-Din Attar Aryan (circa 1145-1221 CE).

As the Persian Empire expanded and interacted with other cultures, the name "Aryan" also gained recognition in adjacent regions. For instance, in India, the term was used to describe the Indo-Aryan people who migrated from the northwest and established settlements along the Indus River Valley and the Gangetic plains.

Other notable individuals with the surname "Aryan" throughout history include the Persian mathematician and astronomer Ghiyath al-Din Jamshid Mas'ud al-Kashi Aryan (circa 1380-1429 CE), known for his contributions to the development of trigonometry and astronomical tables, and the Iranian philosopher and writer Sadegh Hedayat Aryan (1903-1951 CE), renowned for his influential works that explored themes of social alienation and existentialism.

It is worth noting that while the term "Aryan" has been used in various historical contexts to describe ethnic and linguistic groups, its usage and connotations have evolved over time, particularly in the modern era, where it has been associated with controversial ideologies and movements.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Aryan

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

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 Aryan 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.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Aryan has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

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

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

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