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

Chetty, 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 Chetty surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Chetty in America

Chetty is the 61297th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Chetty surname appeared 328 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 Chetty.

We can also compare 2010 data for Chetty 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 Chetty

The surname Chetty originates from South India, particularly from the Tamil Nadu region, and has been in use since the 16th century. It is derived from the Tamil word "Chetty," which means a person engaged in business or trade. The name was initially associated with members of the merchant caste, who were involved in various commercial activities.

The earliest recorded instances of the Chetty surname can be found in ancient Tamil literature and inscriptions dating back to the 16th century. One notable example is the mention of the Chetty community in the historical work "Kongu Nadu," which chronicles the history of the Kongu region in Tamil Nadu.

In the 17th and 18th centuries, the Chetty surname gained prominence as many individuals from this community played a significant role in the flourishing trade networks that connected South India with other parts of the world. Several Chetty merchants engaged in trade with the Dutch, British, and Portuguese colonial powers, establishing themselves as influential figures in the economic landscape of the time.

One of the earliest known individuals with the Chetty surname was Ananda Ranga Chetty (1756-1825), a prominent merchant and philanthropist from Madras (present-day Chennai). He was instrumental in establishing the city's first public library and contributed significantly to the development of educational institutions.

Another notable figure was Annamalai Chetty (1857-1937), a successful businessman and philanthropist from Coimbatore. He founded the Annamalai University in 1929, which became one of the leading educational institutions in South India.

The Chetty surname is also associated with the city of Chettinad, located in Tamil Nadu. The region was known for its wealthy Chetty merchants who built magnificent mansions and played a crucial role in the region's economic and cultural development.

Among other famous individuals with the Chetty surname are Sir Annamalai Chetty (1865-1932), a prominent lawyer and member of the Indian National Congress, and M.A. Chidambaram Chettyar (1859-1935), a prominent banker and industrialist who founded the Indian Bank in 1907.

Throughout history, the Chetty surname has been closely tied to the mercantile and business communities of South India, reflecting the community's significant contributions to the region's economic and cultural growth.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Chetty

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

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

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Chetty, please contact us.

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