2000
#22,370
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,074
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.40
Rare Last name
Hashmi
A surname originating from the Arabic word "Hashim", referring to one's lineage or ancestry.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,707 Americans carry the last name Hashmi. That puts it at #12,532 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.79 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 126,618 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hashmi 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 Hashmi with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.7K
1 in 126,618
Census rank
#12,532
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,361 bearers of the surname Hashmi in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.79 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12532nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hashmi, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 88.3%. The next largest groups are White (5.0%) and Two or More Races (5.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hashmi
The surname Hashmi originates from the Arabic language and can be traced back to the Middle Eastern region, specifically modern-day Iraq and Iran, where it first emerged during the 7th century AD. It is derived from the Arabic word "hashim," which means "one who crushes or breaks."
The name's roots can be linked to the Hashemite clan, a prominent family within the Quraysh tribe of Mecca, to which the Islamic Prophet Muhammad belonged. This association suggests that the surname Hashmi may have initially been adopted by individuals who claimed descent from or allegiance to the Hashemite lineage.
In the early Islamic era, the name Hashmi appeared in various historical records and manuscripts, including chronicles and genealogical texts documenting the lineages of influential Arab families and tribes. One notable early bearer of the name was Hashim ibn Abd Manaf, a respected leader of the Quraysh tribe in the 5th century AD, from whom the Hashemite clan derived its name.
As the Islamic empire expanded across the Middle East, North Africa, and parts of Europe, the surname Hashmi likely spread along with the migration of Arab populations. It is possible to find references to individuals bearing this name in various medieval documents and records from regions that were once part of the Islamic caliphates.
Among the earliest recorded examples of the surname Hashmi is Al-Hashmi, a renowned Arab scholar and poet who lived in the 10th century AD. Another notable figure was Ibn Al-Hashmi, a 12th-century Arabic philologist and grammarian from Andalusia, present-day Spain.
Throughout history, several other prominent individuals have borne the surname Hashmi, including:
1. Mirza Hashim Hashmi (1652-1723), a Persian poet and calligrapher during the Safavid dynasty.
2. Syed Ahmad Hashmi (1856-1921), an Indian Islamic scholar and reformer from the Deobandi movement.
3. Faiz Ahmad Faiz (1911-1984), a renowned Pakistani poet and author whose original surname was Hashmi.
4. Khalifa Rashiduddin Hashmi (1924-2006), a prominent Pakistani religious scholar and founder of the Al-Rashid Trust.
5. Obaidullah Hashmi (1928-2002), a Pakistani artist and calligrapher known for his contributions to Islamic art.
While the surname Hashmi has its roots in the Arabic language and Islamic heritage, over the centuries, it has spread to various regions and cultures, with different spellings and variations emerging in different contexts.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hashmi
Among Census respondents with the surname Hashmi, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 88.3%. The next largest groups are White (5.0%) and Two or More Races (5.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Hashmi 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 Hashmi surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander88.3% · 2,085
- White5.0% · 117
- Two or more races5.0% · 117
- Hispanic or Latino1.1% · 27
- Black or African American0.6% · 13
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hashmi
Hashmi 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
#16,644
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,721
+647 bearers (+60.2%)
Per 100,000 0.58
Rank movement Up 5,726 places
2020
#12,532
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,361
+640 bearers (+37.2%)
Per 100,000 0.79
Rank movement Up 4,112 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #22,370 | 1,074 | 0.40 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #16,644 | 1,721 | 0.58 | +647 bearers (+60.2%) | Up 5,726 places |
| 2020 | #12,532 | 2,361 | 0.79 | +640 bearers (+37.2%) | Up 4,112 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 Hashmi 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 | #16,644 | #12,532 | 24.7% |
| Count | 1,721 | 2,361 | 37.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.58 | 0.79 | 36.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hashmi bearers went from 1,721 to 2,361 (+37.2% change). The surname moved up 4,112 positions in the national ranking, going from #16,644 to #12,532.
FAQ
Hashmi surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hashmi?
Name Census estimates that about 2,707 living Americans carry the surname Hashmi. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 126,618 residents.
How common is Hashmi?
Hashmi ranks #12,532 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.79 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,361 people with the surname Hashmi. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,707), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.79 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.79 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Hashmi.
Has Hashmi become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hashmi went from 1,721 recorded bearers to 2,361. That is an increase of 640 (+37.2%). In the national ranking it rose from #16,644 to #12,532.
What does the Census say about the background of Hashmi?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hashmi, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 88.3%. The next largest groups are White (5.0%) and Two or More Races (5.0%). 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 Hashmi in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.3% (2,085 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hashmi appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (88.3%), White (5.0%), Two or More Races (5.0%). 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 Hashmi (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 Hashmi mean?
A surname originating from the Arabic word "Hashim", referring to one's lineage or ancestry. 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 Hashmi (0.79 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 Americans have the surname Hashmi?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.