2010
#147,253
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Birbal
A surname derived from the Hindu wise minister during the reign of Mughal emperor Akbar.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 130 Americans carry the last name Birbal. That puts it at #147,221 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,636,572 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Birbal 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
130
1 in 2,636,572
Census rank
#147,221
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
113
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 113 bearers of the surname Birbal in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 147221st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Birbal, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 47.8%. The next largest groups are Black (24.8%) and White (18.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Birbal
The surname BIRBAL has its origins in India and can be traced back to the 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the Sanskrit words "bir" meaning brave or courageous, and "bala" meaning strength or power. The name was likely used to describe someone who possessed these qualities.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname BIRBAL can be found in the Akbarnama, a 16th-century biographical account of the Mughal Emperor Akbar. It mentions a courtier and advisor to Akbar named Birbal, whose wit and wisdom were highly regarded. This Birbal, also known as Mahesh Das, lived from around 1528 to 1586 and is often considered the most famous bearer of this surname.
The surname BIRBAL is also associated with the Rajput community, a prominent warrior clan in northern India. It is possible that the name was initially adopted by members of this community to reflect their martial prowess and valor in battle.
In the 17th century, the name BIRBAL appeared in various manuscripts and records from the Rajasthan region of India. One notable example is Rai Birbal, a Rajput noble who served as the governor of Ranthambore during the reign of Emperor Jahangir in the early 1600s.
Another prominent figure with the surname BIRBAL was Maharaja Birbal Singh, who ruled the princely state of Kota in Rajasthan from 1819 to 1828. He was known for his administrative reforms and patronage of the arts.
In the 19th century, Birbal Sahu was a renowned poet and writer from the state of Chhattisgarh, who contributed significantly to the literature of the region. He lived from 1830 to 1898.
Towards the latter half of the 20th century, Birbal Sahni was a distinguished Indian paleobotanist and geologist, renowned for his contributions to the study of plant fossils. He was born in 1891 and passed away in 1949.
Throughout its history, the surname BIRBAL has been associated with individuals from various walks of life, including courtiers, nobles, writers, and scholars, reflecting the diverse backgrounds and achievements of those who have borne this name.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Birbal
Among Census respondents with the surname Birbal, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 47.8%. The next largest groups are Black (24.8%) and White (18.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Birbal 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 Birbal surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander47.8% · 54
- Black or African American24.8% · 28
- White18.6% · 21
- Two or more races6.2% · 7
- Hispanic or Latino1.8% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Birbal
Birbal 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
#147,221
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
+1 bearers (+0.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 32 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #147,253 | 112 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #147,221 | 113 | 0.04 | +1 bearers (+0.9%) | Up 32 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 Birbal 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 | #147,253 | #147,221 | 0.0% |
| Count | 112 | 113 | 0.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -5.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Birbal bearers went from 112 to 113 (+0.9% change). The surname moved up 32 positions in the national ranking, going from #147,253 to #147,221.
FAQ
Birbal surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Birbal?
Name Census estimates that about 130 living Americans carry the surname Birbal. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,636,572 residents.
How common is Birbal?
Birbal ranks #147,221 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 113 people with the surname Birbal. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (130), 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 Birbal.
Has Birbal become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Birbal went from 112 recorded bearers to 113. That is an increase of 1 (+0.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #147,253 to #147,221.
What does the Census say about the background of Birbal?
Among Census respondents with the surname Birbal, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 47.8%. The next largest groups are Black (24.8%) and White (18.6%). 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 Birbal in the 2020 Census, accounting for 47.8% (54 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Birbal appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (47.8%), Black (24.8%), White (18.6%). 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 Birbal (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 Birbal mean?
A surname derived from the Hindu wise minister during the reign of Mughal emperor Akbar. 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 Birbal (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 Americans have the surname Birbal?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.