2000
#150,436
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 100
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Idemoto
A surname derived from Japanese words meaning "out of" and "origin".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 123 Americans carry the last name Idemoto. That puts it at #151,639 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,786,621 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Idemoto 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
123
1 in 2,786,621
Census rank
#151,639
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
107
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 107 bearers of the surname Idemoto in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 151639th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Idemoto, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 79.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (7.5%) and Hispanic (6.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Idemoto
The surname IDEMOTO has its origins in Japan. It is a relatively modern Japanese surname, likely dating back no more than a few centuries. The name is derived from the Japanese words "ide" meaning "rice paddy" and "moto" meaning "origin" or "source". Together, the name can be interpreted as meaning "from the rice paddy" or "rice paddy origin".
IDEMOTO is thought to have originated as a locational surname, referring to a person who lived near or came from a particular rice paddy area. In traditional Japanese society, many surnames were derived from geographic features or places of origin. The name may have first arisen among farming communities or villages known for their rice cultivation.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the IDEMOTO surname can be found in the 19th century records of the Nagasaki region on the island of Kyushu. A man named Idemoto Kinsuke was listed in the village records of Hirado in 1832. Another early record is from 1875, when an Idemoto Toshiro was recorded as a resident of Osaka.
While not a particularly common name historically, a few notable individuals have borne the IDEMOTO surname over the years. Idemoto Isamu (1904-1981) was a Japanese painter and print artist known for his landscape works. Idemoto Kazuhiro (born 1968) is a contemporary Japanese actor and voice actor. Idemoto Akira (1931-2019) was a Japanese novelist and essayist who wrote several books exploring rural life and traditions.
In 1912, a man named Idemoto Masaru was recorded as living in the town of Toyohashi in Aichi Prefecture. He worked as a merchant and trader. Another individual of note was Idemoto Takeshi (1899-1976), a Buddhist monk and scholar who studied and wrote extensively on Zen Buddhism.
While not an exceptionally rare name, IDEMOTO remains a distinctly Japanese surname indicative of the country's rich cultural and linguistic heritage. Its origins lie in the rural landscapes and farming traditions that have shaped Japan for centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Idemoto
Among Census respondents with the surname Idemoto, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 79.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (7.5%) and Hispanic (6.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Idemoto 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 Idemoto surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander79.4% · 85
- Two or more races7.5% · 8
- Hispanic or Latino6.5% · 7
- White5.6% · 6
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Idemoto
Idemoto 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
#156,044
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 104
+4 bearers (+4.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 5,608 places
2020
#151,639
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
+3 bearers (+2.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 4,405 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #150,436 | 100 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #156,044 | 104 | 0.04 | +4 bearers (+4.0%) | Down 5,608 places |
| 2020 | #151,639 | 107 | 0.04 | +3 bearers (+2.9%) | Up 4,405 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 Idemoto 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 | #156,044 | #151,639 | 2.8% |
| Count | 104 | 107 | 2.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -10.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Idemoto bearers went from 104 to 107 (+2.9% change). The surname moved up 4,405 positions in the national ranking, going from #156,044 to #151,639.
FAQ
Idemoto surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Idemoto?
Name Census estimates that about 123 living Americans carry the surname Idemoto. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,786,621 residents.
How common is Idemoto?
Idemoto ranks #151,639 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 107 people with the surname Idemoto. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (123), 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 Idemoto.
Has Idemoto become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Idemoto went from 104 recorded bearers to 107. That is an increase of 3 (+2.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #156,044 to #151,639.
What does the Census say about the background of Idemoto?
Among Census respondents with the surname Idemoto, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 79.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (7.5%) and Hispanic (6.5%). 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 Idemoto in the 2020 Census, accounting for 79.4% (85 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Idemoto appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (79.4%), Two or More Races (7.5%), Hispanic (6.5%). 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 Idemoto (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 Idemoto mean?
A surname derived from Japanese words meaning "out of" and "origin". 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 Idemoto (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 common is the surname Idemoto?
Find out how many people have the surname Idemoto on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.