2010
#152,628
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Assali
Possibly of Arabic origin referring to someone from the village of Al-Assal.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 135 Americans carry the last name Assali. That puts it at #143,511 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,538,921 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Assali 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
135
1 in 2,538,921
Census rank
#143,511
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
118
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 118 bearers of the surname Assali in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 143511th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Assali, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.7%. The next largest groups are Black (9.3%) and Hispanic (9.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Assali
The surname ASSALI originates from the Middle East, specifically the Arabic-speaking regions. It is believed to have roots dating back to the 7th century AD, around the time of the Islamic conquests and the spread of Arabic language and culture across the Middle East and North Africa.
ASSALI is derived from the Arabic word "assal," which means "honey." It is likely that the name was initially given as a nickname or descriptive name to someone who worked with honey, such as a beekeeper or a honey seller. Over time, this nickname became a hereditary surname passed down through generations.
One of the earliest known references to the ASSALI name can be found in historical records from the Abbasid Caliphate, which ruled a significant portion of the Middle East and North Africa from the 8th to the 13th century. These records mention individuals with the name ASSALI residing in cities like Baghdad, Damascus, and Cairo.
During the medieval period, the ASSALI name appeared in various manuscripts and chronicles, particularly those related to trade and commerce. This is unsurprising, given the importance of honey and its by-products in the regional economy at the time.
Among the notable individuals bearing the ASSALI surname throughout history are:
1. Abu al-Hasan Ali al-Assali (c. 1150-1230), a renowned Islamic scholar and writer from Baghdad who authored several works on Arabic grammar and rhetoric.
2. Mahmud al-Assali (c. 1280-1350), a Persian poet and mystic who lived in Shiraz and was known for his spiritual verses and contributions to Sufism.
3. Fatima al-Assali (c. 1390-1460), a prominent Islamic jurist and scholar from Damascus who wrote extensively on Islamic law and jurisprudence.
4. Ahmed al-Assali (c. 1520-1590), a renowned calligrapher and artist from Cairo who was celebrated for his mastery of Arabic calligraphy and his illuminated manuscripts.
5. Yusuf al-Assali (c. 1670-1740), a merchant and traveler from Aleppo who documented his journeys across the Ottoman Empire and parts of Europe, providing valuable insights into the trade routes and cultural exchanges of the time.
The ASSALI name has also been associated with various place names throughout the Middle East, such as Al-Assaliyah, a town in Lebanon, and Assali, a village in Yemen. These place names likely derived from the presence of individuals with the ASSALI surname in those locations or from the local abundance of honey production.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Assali
Among Census respondents with the surname Assali, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.7%. The next largest groups are Black (9.3%) and Hispanic (9.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Assali 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 Assali surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White79.7% · 94
- Black or African American9.3% · 11
- Hispanic or Latino9.3% · 11
- Two or more races1.7% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Assali
Assali 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
#143,511
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 118
+11 bearers (+10.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 9,117 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #152,628 | 107 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #143,511 | 118 | 0.04 | +11 bearers (+10.3%) | Up 9,117 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 Assali 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 | #152,628 | #143,511 | 6.0% |
| Count | 107 | 118 | 10.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -1.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Assali bearers went from 107 to 118 (+10.3% change). The surname moved up 9,117 positions in the national ranking, going from #152,628 to #143,511.
FAQ
Assali surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Assali?
Name Census estimates that about 135 living Americans carry the surname Assali. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,538,921 residents.
How common is Assali?
Assali ranks #143,511 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 118 people with the surname Assali. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (135), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Assali.
Has Assali become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Assali went from 107 recorded bearers to 118. That is an increase of 11 (+10.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #152,628 to #143,511.
What does the Census say about the background of Assali?
Among Census respondents with the surname Assali, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.7%. The next largest groups are Black (9.3%) and Hispanic (9.3%). 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 Assali in the 2020 Census, accounting for 79.7% (94 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Assali appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (79.7%), Black (9.3%), Hispanic (9.3%). 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 Assali (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 Assali mean?
Possibly of Arabic origin referring to someone from the village of Al-Assal. 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 Assali (0.04 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 have the last name Assali?
Want to know how many people have the surname Assali? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.