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

Haneef, 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 Haneef surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Haneef in America

Haneef is the 123796th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Haneef surname appeared 139 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 Haneef.

We can also compare 2010 data for Haneef 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 Haneef

The surname Haneef traces its origins to the Arabic language, with its roots dating back to the Middle Eastern region. The name Haneef is derived from the Arabic word "Hanif," which means "upright" or "true believer." It is closely associated with the pre-Islamic traditions of the Arabian Peninsula.

The earliest known reference to the name Haneef can be found in Islamic historical texts and manuscripts, particularly those related to the life of Prophet Muhammad and his companions. One notable figure bearing this surname was Haneef ibn Qays, a companion of the Prophet who lived in the 7th century CE.

During the Islamic Golden Age, which spanned from the 8th to the 13th centuries, several prominent scholars and intellectuals carried the surname Haneef. One such notable figure was Abu Bakr al-Haneef (born around 750 CE), a renowned scholar of hadith (the recorded sayings and actions of Prophet Muhammad).

As Islam spread across various regions, the surname Haneef also found its way into various cultures and societies. In the Indian subcontinent, for instance, the name Haneef gained popularity among Muslim communities, particularly in regions like Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Haneef in the Indian subcontinent can be found in the writings of the 16th-century Sufi poet and scholar, Shaikh Abdul Haq Muhaddis Dehlavi (1551-1642), who mentioned a contemporary named Shaikh Haneef.

Throughout history, several other notable individuals have borne the surname Haneef. Among them are Ghulam Haneef Rind (1914-1995), a prominent Sindhi writer and poet from Pakistan; Mian Bashir Ahmed Haneef (1917-1998), a Pakistani politician and former governor of Balochistan; and Shaikh Haneef (born 1949), a former Indian cricketer who played Test cricket for India in the 1970s.

Additionally, the surname Haneef has been associated with various place names and localities across the Middle East and South Asia. For example, the village of Haneef Abad in Punjab, Pakistan, is believed to have been named after an individual bearing this surname.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Haneef

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

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

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

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