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

Benjamin, 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 Benjamin surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Benjamin in America

Benjamin is the 850th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Benjamin surname appeared 40,590 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 14 people would have the surname Benjamin.

We can also compare 2010 data for Benjamin 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 Benjamin

The surname Benjamin is a patronymic name derived from the Hebrew personal name "Binyamin". It originated in the ancient Israelite tribes and was initially used to refer to descendants of the biblical figure Benjamin, one of the twelve sons of Jacob. The name Benjamin means "son of the right hand" or "son of the south" in Hebrew.

The earliest recorded instances of the surname Benjamin can be traced back to medieval Jewish communities in Europe, particularly in France, Germany, and England. It was commonly used among Ashkenazi Jewish families during this period. One of the earliest known references to the surname Benjamin is found in the 13th-century Exchequer Rolls of the Jews in England.

In the 14th century, the surname Benjamin was documented in various records, including the Subsidy Rolls of Suffolk and the Poll Tax Returns of Yorkshire. During this time, variations in spelling, such as Beniamin and Benyman, were also observed.

Notable individuals with the surname Benjamin include:

1. Judah P. Benjamin (1811-1884), an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as a Senator from Louisiana, Secretary of War, and Secretary of State for the Confederate States of America.

2. Walter Benjamin (1892-1940), a German Jewish philosopher, cultural critic, and essayist, best known for his work on aesthetics, modernity, and the philosophy of history.

3. Asher Benjamin (1773-1845), an American architect and author who was a prominent figure in the Federal style of architecture in the early United States.

4. Arthur Benjamin (1893-1960), an Australian composer and pianist known for his works in the light classical and popular music genres.

5. Raphael Benjamin (1836-1891), a German-born American artist and engraver, known for his engravings of portraits and historical scenes.

The surname Benjamin has also been associated with various place names, such as Benjamin's Town in South Carolina, and Benjamin's Cove in Newfoundland, Canada. These place names likely originated from individuals bearing the surname Benjamin who settled or owned land in those areas.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Benjamin

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

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!