2010
#152,628
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Harilal
A surname indicating lineage or descendant of Lord Hari, a Hindu deity.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 125 Americans carry the last name Harilal. That puts it at #150,205 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,742,035 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Harilal 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.
Bearers in the US
125
1 in 2,742,035
Census rank
#150,205
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
109
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 109 bearers of the surname Harilal in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 150205th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Harilal, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 74.3%. The next largest groups are Black (11.9%) and Hispanic (5.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Harilal
The surname "HARILAL" originates from the Indian subcontinent, specifically from the Hindi and Sanskrit languages. It is a compound name derived from the combination of the words "Hari" and "Lal".
"Hari" is a Sanskrit word meaning "lord" or "supreme being", often used as a reference to the Hindu deity Vishnu. On the other hand, "Lal" is a Hindi word meaning "beloved" or "dear". Therefore, the name "HARILAL" can be interpreted as "the beloved of the lord" or "the dear one to the supreme being".
The earliest records of this surname can be traced back to the medieval period in India, particularly in the regions of northern and central India where Hindi and Sanskrit were widely spoken. It is likely that the name was initially adopted by devotees or followers of Vaishnavism, a branch of Hinduism that venerates Vishnu as the supreme deity.
In ancient Hindu scriptures and texts, such as the Puranas and the Upanishads, there are references to individuals bearing names similar to "HARILAL". One notable example is the 16th-century Hindu scholar and poet, Haridasa Lala, who was a prominent figure in the Bhakti movement and composed many devotional songs in praise of Lord Krishna.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the surname "HARILAL". One such person was Harilal Gandhi (1888-1948), the eldest son of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, the famous leader of the Indian independence movement. Harilal Gandhi had a strained relationship with his father and struggled with alcoholism, but he played a role in the Indian freedom struggle.
Another prominent figure was Harilal Upadhyay (1891-1968), an Indian writer, scholar, and educationist known for his contributions to Hindi literature and his work in promoting the Hindi language. He was also a freedom fighter and served as the President of the Akhil Bharatiya Hindi Sahitya Sammelan (All India Hindi Literary Conference).
In the field of music, Harilal Choudhary (1921-2002) was a renowned Indian classical vocalist and exponent of the Khayal style of Hindustani classical music. He was awarded the prestigious Padma Bhushan, India's third-highest civilian honor, in 1992.
Harilal Khanna (1920-2000) was an acclaimed Indian film actor and director who worked in both Hindi and Punjabi cinema. He is best known for his roles in films like "Anari" (1959) and "Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam" (1962).
Lastly, Harilal Shastri (1884-1964) was an Indian freedom fighter, social reformer, and writer from the state of Gujarat. He played a significant role in the Non-Cooperation Movement led by Mahatma Gandhi and was also involved in the promotion of Gujarati literature and language.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Harilal
Among Census respondents with the surname Harilal, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 74.3%. The next largest groups are Black (11.9%) and Hispanic (5.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Harilal 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 Harilal surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander74.3% · 81
- Black or African American11.9% · 13
- Hispanic or Latino5.5% · 6
- White3.7% · 4
- Two or more races2.8% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.8% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Harilal
Harilal appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#150,205
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 109
+2 bearers (+1.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 2,423 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #152,628 | 107 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #150,205 | 109 | 0.04 | +2 bearers (+1.9%) | Up 2,423 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 Harilal 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 | #152,628 | #150,205 | 1.6% |
| Count | 107 | 109 | 1.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -8.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Harilal bearers went from 107 to 109 (+1.9% change). The surname moved up 2,423 positions in the national ranking, going from #152,628 to #150,205.
FAQ
Harilal surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Harilal?
Name Census estimates that about 125 living Americans carry the surname Harilal. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,742,035 residents.
How common is Harilal?
Harilal ranks #150,205 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 109 people with the surname Harilal. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (125), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Harilal.
Has Harilal become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Harilal went from 107 recorded bearers to 109. That is an increase of 2 (+1.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #152,628 to #150,205.
What does the Census say about the background of Harilal?
Among Census respondents with the surname Harilal, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 74.3%. The next largest groups are Black (11.9%) and Hispanic (5.5%). 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 Harilal in the 2020 Census, accounting for 74.3% (81 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Harilal appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (74.3%), Black (11.9%), Hispanic (5.5%). 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 Harilal (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 Harilal mean?
A surname indicating lineage or descendant of Lord Hari, a Hindu deity. 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 Harilal (0.04 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 last name Harilal?
If you just want to know how common the surname Harilal is, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.