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

Cheah, 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 Cheah surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Cheah in America

Cheah is the 46568th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Cheah surname appeared 457 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 Cheah.

We can also compare 2010 data for Cheah 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 Cheah

The surname Cheah originates from the Hokkien Chinese dialect and is believed to have its roots in the Fujian province of China, dating back to the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). The name is thought to be derived from the Hokkien word "chiah," which means "to eat" or "to consume."

The earliest known records of the Cheah surname can be traced back to the late 16th century, where it appears in various historical documents and genealogical records from the Fujian region. One of the earliest known instances of the name is found in the "Qing Bai Lei Chao" (清稗类钞), a collection of anecdotes and stories compiled during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1912).

In the 17th century, the Cheah surname began to spread beyond the Fujian province as Chinese immigrants ventured to other parts of Southeast Asia, particularly Malaysia and Singapore. One notable figure from this period is Cheah Chu Kang (1824-1862), a wealthy plantation owner and philanthropist who established the town of Choa Chu Kang in Singapore.

As the Chinese diaspora continued to grow, the Cheah surname became more widespread throughout the 19th and 20th centuries. One prominent individual bearing this name was Cheah Teck Khiam (1891-1972), a prominent Malaysian businessman and philanthropist who founded the Cheah Kongsi, a Chinese clan association in Penang.

Another notable figure was Cheah Cheang Loke (1842-1932), a Malaysian tin mining magnate and philanthropist who was instrumental in establishing several educational institutions in Penang, including the Penang Free School and the Penang Chinese Girls' High School.

In the field of literature, Cheah Theen Soong (1903-1991) was a renowned Malaysian novelist and short story writer, widely regarded as one of the pioneers of modern Malay literature. His works explored themes of social injustice and the struggles of the working class.

More recently, Cheah Cheng Hye (born 1952) is a Malaysian-born American billionaire and co-founder of Value Partners, one of Asia's largest independent asset management firms.

While the surname Cheah is most prevalent in Malaysia and Singapore, it can also be found in other parts of Southeast Asia, as well as in Chinese communities around the world, reflecting the far-reaching influence of the Chinese diaspora.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Cheah

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

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

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