2000
#121,780
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 131
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Bhanot
A surname originating from India, meaning a vegetable farmer or seller.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 436 Americans carry the last name Bhanot. That puts it at #57,805 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.13 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 786,134 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Bhanot 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 Bhanot with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
436
1 in 786,134
Census rank
#57,805
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
380
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 380 bearers of the surname Bhanot in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.13 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 57805th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Bhanot, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 93.7%. The next largest groups are White (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Bhanot
The surname BHANOT is of Indian origin, specifically from the Punjab region of northern India. It is believed to have originated during the medieval period, sometime between the 10th and 15th centuries. The name is derived from the Sanskrit word "bhanu," which means "sun" or "light," and likely referred to a person's occupation or physical characteristics related to the sun or brightness.
BHANOT is a variant spelling of the more common surname Bhanot, which has its roots in various villages and towns across Punjab. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the "Ain-i-Akbari," a 16th-century administrative document commissioned by the Mughal Emperor Akbar, which mentions a village named Bhanot in the Sirhind district of present-day Punjab.
In the 17th century, a notable figure bearing the surname BHANOT was Bhai Mati Das BHANOT, a devout Sikh who was executed by the Mughal authorities for his resistance against forced religious conversion. His martyrdom is commemorated in Sikh history and literature.
During the 18th and 19th centuries, the BHANOT surname appeared in various administrative records and local chronicles of the Punjab region, particularly in areas like Jalandhar, Ludhiana, and Amritsar. One prominent individual from this period was Sardar Kharak Singh BHANOT, a military leader and chieftain who played a role in the Anglo-Sikh Wars of the 1840s.
In more recent times, the BHANOT surname has been carried by several notable figures, including:
1. Jagat Narain BHANOT (1892-1979), an Indian lawyer and politician who served as a member of the Constituent Assembly of India and played a significant role in the drafting of the Indian Constitution.
2. Suman BHANOT (1954-1986), an Indian flight attendant who became a national hero after sacrificing her life while saving passengers during a terrorist hijacking of Pan Am Flight 73 in Karachi, Pakistan.
3. Harjit Singh BHANOT (born 1953), an Indian field hockey player who represented India in multiple Olympic Games and was part of the team that won the gold medal at the 1980 Moscow Olympics.
4. Poonam BHANOT (born 1976), an Indian actress and model who has appeared in various Bollywood films and television shows.
5. Aman BHANOT (born 1985), an Indian cricketer who has played domestic cricket for teams like Punjab and Himachal Pradesh.
While the BHANOT surname is most commonly associated with the Sikh community in Punjab, it has also been adopted by individuals from other religious backgrounds in the region. The name continues to be widely used across India and within the Indian diaspora worldwide.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Bhanot
Among Census respondents with the surname Bhanot, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 93.7%. The next largest groups are White (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Bhanot 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 Bhanot surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander93.7% · 356
- White2.9% · 11
- Two or more races2.1% · 8
- Hispanic or Latino1.3% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Bhanot
Bhanot 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
#78,040
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 245
+114 bearers (+87.0%)
Per 100,000 0.08
Rank movement Up 43,740 places
2020
#57,805
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 380
+135 bearers (+55.1%)
Per 100,000 0.13
Rank movement Up 20,235 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #121,780 | 131 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #78,040 | 245 | 0.08 | +114 bearers (+87.0%) | Up 43,740 places |
| 2020 | #57,805 | 380 | 0.13 | +135 bearers (+55.1%) | Up 20,235 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 Bhanot 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 | #78,040 | #57,805 | 25.9% |
| Count | 245 | 380 | 55.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.08 | 0.13 | 58.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Bhanot bearers went from 245 to 380 (+55.1% change). The surname moved up 20,235 positions in the national ranking, going from #78,040 to #57,805.
FAQ
Bhanot surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Bhanot?
Name Census estimates that about 436 living Americans carry the surname Bhanot. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 786,134 residents.
How common is Bhanot?
Bhanot ranks #57,805 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.13 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 380 people with the surname Bhanot. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (436), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.13 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.13 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 Bhanot.
Has Bhanot become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Bhanot went from 245 recorded bearers to 380. That is an increase of 135 (+55.1%). In the national ranking it rose from #78,040 to #57,805.
What does the Census say about the background of Bhanot?
Among Census respondents with the surname Bhanot, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 93.7%. The next largest groups are White (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.1%). 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 Bhanot in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.7% (356 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Bhanot appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (93.7%), White (2.9%), Two or More Races (2.1%). 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 Bhanot (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 Bhanot mean?
A surname originating from India, meaning a vegetable farmer or seller. 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 Bhanot (0.13 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 share the surname Bhanot?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.