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

Asai, 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 Asai surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Asai in America

Asai is the 51066th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Asai surname appeared 408 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 Asai.

We can also compare 2010 data for Asai 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 Asai

The surname "ASAI" has its origins in Japan, where it first emerged during the Heian period (794-1185 AD). The name is thought to derive from the Japanese word "asai," which means "shallow" or "shallow water," suggesting that the name may have originally referred to someone who lived near a shallow body of water or a shallow area.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname ASAI can be found in the Shōyūki, a historical record compiled in the late 12th century. This document mentions an individual named ASAI Hisamune, a samurai who lived during the Kamakura period (1185-1333 AD).

During the Muromachi period (1336-1573 AD), the ASAI clan rose to prominence as a powerful samurai family in the Ōmi Province (present-day Shiga Prefecture). The clan's most notable member was ASAI Nagamasa (1545-1573), a skilled military commander who played a significant role in the Sengoku period (1467-1603 AD).

Another historical figure with the ASAI surname was ASAI Masatsuna (1455-1535), a Japanese monk and scholar who lived during the Muromachi period. He was known for his contributions to the study of Zen Buddhism and his writings on various philosophical and religious topics.

In the late 16th century, the ASAI surname appeared in the Shinchōki, a historical record that documented the lives of various samurai families during the Azuchi-Momoyama period (1573-1603 AD). This record mentions ASAI Nagamori, a samurai who served under the powerful warlord Toyotomi Hideyoshi.

During the Edo period (1603-1868 AD), the ASAI surname continued to be associated with samurai families and influential individuals. One notable figure from this era was ASAI Keiichi (1791-1867), a scholar and educator who played a significant role in the development of modern education in Japan.

Throughout history, the ASAI surname has also been associated with various place names in Japan, such as Asai-mura (Asai Village) and Asai-gawa (Asai River), which may have influenced the origin and spread of the name.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Asai

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

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

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

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