2000
#147,095
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 103
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Rare Last name
Bista
A Nepalese surname believed to derive from the Bista caste or clan.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,807 Americans carry the last name Bista. That puts it at #17,524 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.53 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 189,681 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Bista 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
1.8K
1 in 189,681
Census rank
#17,524
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,576 bearers of the surname Bista in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.53 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 17524th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Bista, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 96.0%. The next largest groups are White (2.9%) and Two or More Races (0.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Bista
The surname BISTA originated in Nepal, first appearing in records from the 14th century. It is believed to derive from the Nepali word "bista," meaning a small village or hamlet. The name was initially concentrated in the central and eastern regions of Nepal, particularly in the districts of Sindhupalchok and Bhojpur.
One of the earliest documented instances of the BISTA surname can be found in a land grant inscription from the reign of King Jayasthiti Malla, dated 1384 CE. This inscription mentions a person named "Bishnudatta Bista" as a witness to the land transaction.
During the medieval period, the BISTA family held significant landholdings and played an influential role in the local administration of various parts of Nepal. In the 16th century, a BISTA clan member named Kalu Bista (c. 1520-1590) was appointed as the governor of Nuwakot, a strategic hill fort located near the present-day Kathmandu Valley.
The BISTA surname also appears in several historical texts and manuscripts from Nepal. The "Gopalarajavamsavali," a chronicle of the kings of the Malla dynasty, mentions a minister named "Shiva Bista" who served under King Siddhi Narasimha Malla in the late 17th century.
One of the most prominent figures with the BISTA surname was Kaji Amar Singh Bista (1784-1839), a military commander and statesman during the reign of King Rajendra Bikram Shah. He played a crucial role in suppressing the Bhandari rebellion of 1806 and was later appointed as the governor of Palpa.
Other notable individuals with the BISTA surname include Chandra Shekhar Bista (1901-1982), a renowned Nepali writer and poet, and Durga Datt Bista (1917-2005), a prominent anthropologist and scholar who studied the ethnic groups of Nepal.
In the 20th century, the BISTA surname gained further recognition with individuals like Hari Bista (1936-2021), a prominent communist leader and politician, and Shyam Bista (born 1962), a former international cricket player who represented Nepal in various tournaments.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Bista
Among Census respondents with the surname Bista, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 96.0%. The next largest groups are White (2.9%) and Two or More Races (0.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Bista 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 Bista surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander96.0% · 1,513
- White2.9% · 46
- Two or more races0.6% · 9
- Hispanic or Latino0.3% · 5
- Black or African American0.1% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Bista
Bista 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
#40,909
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 533
+430 bearers (+417.5%)
Per 100,000 0.18
Rank movement Up 106,186 places
2020
#17,524
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,576
+1,043 bearers (+195.7%)
Per 100,000 0.53
Rank movement Up 23,385 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #147,095 | 103 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #40,909 | 533 | 0.18 | +430 bearers (+417.5%) | Up 106,186 places |
| 2020 | #17,524 | 1,576 | 0.53 | +1,043 bearers (+195.7%) | Up 23,385 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 Bista 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 | #40,909 | #17,524 | 57.2% |
| Count | 533 | 1,576 | 195.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.18 | 0.53 | 192.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Bista bearers went from 533 to 1,576 (+195.7% change). The surname moved up 23,385 positions in the national ranking, going from #40,909 to #17,524.
FAQ
Bista surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Bista?
Name Census estimates that about 1,807 living Americans carry the surname Bista. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 189,681 residents.
How common is Bista?
Bista ranks #17,524 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.53 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 1,576 people with the surname Bista. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,807), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.53 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.53 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Bista.
Has Bista become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Bista went from 533 recorded bearers to 1,576. That is an increase of 1,043 (+195.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #40,909 to #17,524.
What does the Census say about the background of Bista?
Among Census respondents with the surname Bista, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 96.0%. The next largest groups are White (2.9%) and Two or More Races (0.6%). 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 Bista in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.0% (1,513 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Bista appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (96.0%), White (2.9%), Two or More Races (0.6%). 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 Bista (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 Bista mean?
A Nepalese surname believed to derive from the Bista caste or clan. 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 Bista (0.53 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 Bista?
Want to know how common the surname Bista is? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.