2000
#26,694
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 858
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.32
Rare Last name
Asad
An Arabic surname meaning "lion" or "brave".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,339 Americans carry the last name Asad. That puts it at #14,129 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.68 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 146,539 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Asad 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 Asad with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.3K
1 in 146,539
Census rank
#14,129
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,040 bearers of the surname Asad in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.68 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14129th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Asad, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 44.2%. The next largest groups are White (41.3%) and Black (5.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Asad
The surname ASAD is derived from the Arabic word 'asad', meaning 'lion'. It is believed to have originated in the Middle East, particularly in areas that are now part of modern-day Iraq, Syria, and the Arabian Peninsula. The name likely emerged in the 7th century AD during the rise of Islam and the spread of the Arabic language across the region.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name ASAD can be found in ancient Islamic texts and manuscripts, such as the Qur'an and Hadith literature. It was often used as a descriptive name for individuals who displayed courage, strength, and bravery in battle, likening them to the fierceness of a lion.
In the 9th century AD, the ASAD name gained prominence with the rise of the Abbasid Caliphate, which ruled over vast territories stretching from modern-day Morocco to Central Asia. One notable individual bearing this name was Al-Asad ibn al-Furat, a powerful military commander and governor who lived from 759 to 828 AD.
As the Islamic empires expanded, the ASAD surname spread to other regions, including parts of North Africa, the Iberian Peninsula, and South Asia. In the 12th century, the ASAD name appeared in historical records from the Crusades, with references to Muslim warriors and leaders bearing this name.
During the Ottoman Empire, which ruled over large parts of the Middle East, North Africa, and Eastern Europe from the 14th to the early 20th century, the ASAD surname was carried by several influential families and individuals. One such notable figure was Asad Pasha, an Ottoman statesman and military leader who served as the Grand Vizier (prime minister) in the late 16th century.
In more recent history, the ASAD surname has been associated with prominent political figures, such as Hafez al-Assad, the former President of Syria who ruled from 1971 to 2000, and his son, Bashar al-Assad, the current President of Syria.
Other notable individuals with the surname ASAD include:
1. Waris Shah (1722-1798), a renowned Punjabi Sufi poet and scholar from the Indian subcontinent.
2. Mirza Asadullah Khan Ghalib (1797-1869), a prominent Urdu and Persian poet from the Mughal Empire.
3. Asad al-Din Shirkuh (1118-1169), a prominent Kurdish military commander and uncle of Saladin, the famous Sultan of Egypt and Syria.
4. Asad Zaman (born 1951), a Pakistani-American economist and scholar known for his contributions to Islamic economics.
5. Asad Rauf (born 1956), a former Pakistani cricket umpire who officiated in international matches.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Asad
Among Census respondents with the surname Asad, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 44.2%. The next largest groups are White (41.3%) and Black (5.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Asad 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 Asad surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander44.2% · 901
- White41.3% · 842
- Black or African American5.2% · 106
- Hispanic or Latino4.7% · 96
- Two or more races4.6% · 94
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Asad
Asad 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
#19,105
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,424
+566 bearers (+66.0%)
Per 100,000 0.48
Rank movement Up 7,589 places
2020
#14,129
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,040
+616 bearers (+43.3%)
Per 100,000 0.68
Rank movement Up 4,976 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #26,694 | 858 | 0.32 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #19,105 | 1,424 | 0.48 | +566 bearers (+66.0%) | Up 7,589 places |
| 2020 | #14,129 | 2,040 | 0.68 | +616 bearers (+43.3%) | Up 4,976 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 Asad 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 | #19,105 | #14,129 | 26.0% |
| Count | 1,424 | 2,040 | 43.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.48 | 0.68 | 42.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Asad bearers went from 1,424 to 2,040 (+43.3% change). The surname moved up 4,976 positions in the national ranking, going from #19,105 to #14,129.
FAQ
Asad surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Asad?
Name Census estimates that about 2,339 living Americans carry the surname Asad. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 146,539 residents.
How common is Asad?
Asad ranks #14,129 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.68 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,040 people with the surname Asad. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,339), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.68 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.68 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Asad.
Has Asad become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Asad went from 1,424 recorded bearers to 2,040. That is an increase of 616 (+43.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #19,105 to #14,129.
What does the Census say about the background of Asad?
Among Census respondents with the surname Asad, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 44.2%. The next largest groups are White (41.3%) and Black (5.2%). 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?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest self-reported group for the surname Asad in the 2020 Census, accounting for 44.2% (901 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Asad appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (44.2%), White (41.3%), Black (5.2%). 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 Asad (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 Asad mean?
An Arabic surname meaning "lion" or "brave". 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 Asad (0.68 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 common is the surname Asad?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the surname Asad at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.