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

Cham, 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 Cham surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Cham in America

Cham is the 22791st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Cham surname appeared 1,124 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Cham.

We can also compare 2010 data for Cham 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 Cham

The surname CHAM is of English origin, dating back to the 13th century. It is believed to be a locational name, derived from the Old English word 'cham' or 'camb', meaning a bend or ridge. This suggests that the name may have originated from a place near a bend in a river or a ridgeline.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Lincolnshire, a census-like record from 1274, which mentions a John de Cham. The name also appears in the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379, where a Thomas de Cham is listed.

The CHAM surname may also be linked to the village of Cham in Gloucestershire, England. This place name is thought to derive from the Old English word 'camb', meaning a ridge or hill. It is possible that early bearers of the surname hailed from this village or the surrounding area.

A notable historical figure with the CHAM surname was John Cham, a 14th-century English landowner and Member of Parliament for Somerset. He was born around 1330 and died in 1391.

Another individual of note was Thomas Cham, a 16th-century English clergyman and author. He was born in Wiltshire in 1504 and served as a canon of the church at Salisbury Cathedral. He wrote several religious works, including a commentary on the Book of Psalms.

In the 17th century, Walter Cham was a prominent merchant and sea captain from Bristol, England. He was involved in the transatlantic trade and made several voyages to the Caribbean and North America between 1640 and 1670.

Moving into the 18th century, William Cham was a notable English architect and surveyor. He was born in 1720 and is known for his work on various buildings and estates in the counties of Wiltshire and Somerset.

Finally, in the 19th century, there was Edward Cham, a British explorer and naturalist. He was born in 1828 and participated in several expeditions to Africa and Asia, where he collected and documented various plant and animal specimens.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Cham

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

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

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Cham, 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!