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

Gyimah, 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 Gyimah surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Gyimah in America

Gyimah is the 70833rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Gyimah surname appeared 276 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 Gyimah.

We can also compare 2010 data for Gyimah 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 Gyimah

The surname Gyimah has its origins in Ghana, West Africa, where it is believed to have emerged in the late 17th or early 18th century. It is an Akan name, derived from the Twi language spoken by the Akan people. The name is thought to be a variation of the word "gyima," which means "valuable" or "priceless."

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Gyimah can be found in the historical records of the Ashanti Kingdom, a powerful empire that dominated much of present-day Ghana during the 18th and 19th centuries. These records, which were written in the Adinkra script, mention several individuals with the surname Gyimah who held important positions within the kingdom's administrative and military ranks.

In the late 19th century, the name Gyimah appeared in the records of British colonial administrators in Ghana, as they documented the names of local chiefs and community leaders. One notable individual from this period was Nana Gyimah Kwartenin, a prominent chief of the Fante people who played a significant role in negotiating treaties between the British and local authorities.

As the 20th century progressed, the Gyimah surname spread beyond Ghana's borders, carried by individuals who emigrated to other parts of the world. One such individual was Kwesi Gyimah Plange, a Ghanaian academic and diplomat who served as the first Secretary-General of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) from 1963 to 1964.

In the field of literature, Kwesi Brew Gyimah (1926-2020) was a notable Ghanaian novelist and poet whose works explored themes of cultural identity and societal change in post-colonial Africa. His novel "The Inheritance" won the Ghana Book Award in 1967.

Another prominent figure with the surname Gyimah was Kwadwo Gyimah-Boadi (1942-2020), a Ghanaian political scientist and democracy advocate who co-founded the Center for Democratic Development (CDD), a leading think tank in Ghana. He was widely respected for his contributions to strengthening democratic governance in Africa.

While the Gyimah surname is most commonly associated with Ghana, it has also been adopted by individuals of other West African backgrounds, reflecting the region's rich cultural diversity and shared histories.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Gyimah

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

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

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

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