2000
#29,390
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 758
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.28
Rare Last name
Fatima
A feminine surname derived from the revered daughter of the Prophet Muhammad.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,214 Americans carry the last name Fatima. That puts it at #7,094 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.52 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 65,737 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Fatima 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Fatima with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
5.2K
1 in 65,737
Census rank
#7,094
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,547 bearers of the surname Fatima in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.52 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7094th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Fatima, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 94.3%. The next largest groups are White (2.6%) and Hispanic (1.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Fatima
Fatima is a surname with origins tracing back to the Arab world. It is derived from the Arabic name Fatimah, which was the name of the daughter of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. The name Fatimah itself is derived from the Arabic root word "fatm," which means to wean or to be weaned.
The surname Fatima likely emerged in the medieval period, as the spread of Islam brought Arabic names and influences to various regions. It is believed to have originated in areas such as the Arabian Peninsula, North Africa, and parts of the Middle East.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Fatima can be found in the 13th century, when a scholar named Muhammad ibn Fatima al-Hamadhani lived in the city of Hama, Syria. Another notable early bearer of the surname was the 14th-century Andalusian poet Ibn al-Fatima, whose full name was Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn Fatima al-Ansari.
In the 15th century, the surname Fatima appeared in records from the Iberian Peninsula, particularly in the context of the Moriscos, who were Muslims and former Muslims living in Spain and Portugal after the Reconquista. One example is Fatima Bint Al-Mulk, a Morisco woman who lived in Granada in the late 15th century.
As the surname spread across different regions, it took on various spellings and forms, such as Fatmi, Fatimi, and Fatemah, reflecting the linguistic and cultural influences of those areas.
Notable historical figures with the surname Fatima include:
1. Fatima al-Fihri (born c. 800), a Muslim woman who founded the Al-Qarawiyyin Mosque and University in Fez, Morocco, considered the oldest continuously operating university in the world.
2. Fatima al-Batayhi (died 1459), a Moroccan scholar and poet known for her expertise in Islamic law and Arabic literature.
3. Fatima Sultan (1592-1670), an Ottoman princess and daughter of Sultan Ahmed I, who commissioned the Fatma Sultan Mosque in Istanbul.
4. Fatima Mernissi (1940-2015), a Moroccan feminist writer and sociologist, known for her works on women's rights and Islam.
5. Fatima Jinnah (1893-1967), a Pakistani politician and dental surgeon, who played a prominent role in the movement for an independent Pakistan and was the sister of Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan.
These examples illustrate the historical presence and significance of the surname Fatima across various regions, cultures, and fields, reflecting its deep-rooted origins and enduring legacy.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Fatima
Among Census respondents with the surname Fatima, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 94.3%. The next largest groups are White (2.6%) and Hispanic (1.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Fatima 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 Fatima surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander94.3% · 4,287
- White2.6% · 120
- Hispanic or Latino1.1% · 48
- Black or African American0.9% · 41
- Two or more races0.7% · 34
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 17
Timeline
Historical Census data for Fatima
Fatima 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
#15,959
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,820
+1,062 bearers (+140.1%)
Per 100,000 0.62
Rank movement Up 13,431 places
2020
#7,094
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,547
+2,727 bearers (+149.8%)
Per 100,000 1.52
Rank movement Up 8,865 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #29,390 | 758 | 0.28 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #15,959 | 1,820 | 0.62 | +1,062 bearers (+140.1%) | Up 13,431 places |
| 2020 | #7,094 | 4,547 | 1.52 | +2,727 bearers (+149.8%) | Up 8,865 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 Fatima 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 | #15,959 | #7,094 | 55.5% |
| Count | 1,820 | 4,547 | 149.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.62 | 1.52 | 145.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Fatima bearers went from 1,820 to 4,547 (+149.8% change). The surname moved up 8,865 positions in the national ranking, going from #15,959 to #7,094.
FAQ
Fatima surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Fatima?
Name Census estimates that about 5,214 living Americans carry the surname Fatima. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 65,737 residents.
How common is Fatima?
Fatima ranks #7,094 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.52 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 4,547 people with the surname Fatima. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,214), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.52 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.52 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Fatima.
Has Fatima become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Fatima went from 1,820 recorded bearers to 4,547. That is an increase of 2,727 (+149.8%). In the national ranking it rose from #15,959 to #7,094.
What does the Census say about the background of Fatima?
Among Census respondents with the surname Fatima, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 94.3%. The next largest groups are White (2.6%) and Hispanic (1.1%). 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 Fatima in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.3% (4,287 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Fatima appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (94.3%), White (2.6%), Hispanic (1.1%). 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 Fatima (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 Fatima mean?
A feminine surname derived from the revered daughter of the Prophet Muhammad. 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 Fatima (1.52 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 surname Fatima?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.