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

Inaba, 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 Inaba surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Inaba in America

Inaba is the 53667th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Inaba surname appeared 385 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 Inaba.

We can also compare 2010 data for Inaba 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 Inaba

The surname Inaba has its origins in Japan, with records dating back to the 8th century. It is believed to be derived from the name of a region in what is now Gifu Prefecture, which was known as Inaba no Kuni during the Nara period.

The name "Inaba" is thought to be related to the Old Japanese word "inaba," which referred to a type of rice paddy or field. This suggests that the name may have originally been a descriptor for those who lived or worked in such areas.

One of the earliest recorded mentions of the Inaba surname can be found in the Shoku Nihongi, an early Japanese historical text from the 8th century. This text includes references to several individuals with the name Inaba, indicating that it was already established as a surname by that time.

During the Kamakura period (1185-1333), the Inaba clan was a prominent samurai family based in the Inaba region. They served as vassals to the Ashikaga shogunate and played a significant role in the conflicts of that era.

Notable individuals with the Inaba surname throughout history include:

1. Inaba Masanori (1571-1628), a renowned swordsman and martial artist who helped establish the Inaba-ryū school of swordsmanship.
2. Inaba Masayasu (1640-1718), a Confucian scholar and educator who served as a tutor to several high-ranking daimyo families.
3. Inaba Sadakichi (1808-1876), a prominent educator and pioneer of modern teaching methods in Japan.
4. Inaba Misao (1888-1975), a renowned painter and printmaker who helped popularize the ukiyo-e art form in the early 20th century.
5. Inaba Hidezō (1924-2001), a celebrated author and playwright whose works often explored themes of social justice and human rights.

The Inaba surname has also been associated with various place names throughout Japan, such as Inaba-cho in Gifu Prefecture and Inaba-mura in Fukushima Prefecture, further reinforcing its historical ties to specific regions.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Inaba

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

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

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

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