2000
#11,265
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,576
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.95
Rare Last name
Issa
A surname of Arabic origin meaning "Jesus" or "God is salvation," derived from the Arabic name Isa.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,393 Americans carry the last name Issa. That puts it at #5,950 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.87 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 53,614 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Issa 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 Issa with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
6.4K
1 in 53,614
Census rank
#5,950
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,575 bearers of the surname Issa in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.87 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5950th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Issa, the largest self-reported group is White at 69.5%. The next largest groups are Black (18.5%) and Two or More Races (4.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Issa
The surname Issa originated in the Middle East, deriving from the Arabic name Isa, which means "Jesus" or "son of Jesus." It is believed to have emerged in the 7th century AD, during the rise of Islam, when Arabic names became more prevalent in the region.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name Issa can be found in ancient Arabic manuscripts and historical texts from the 8th and 9th centuries. These documents often referred to individuals with this surname who held positions of religious or political significance in the early Islamic caliphates.
In the 10th century, the name Issa appeared in records of the Fatimid Caliphate, which ruled over parts of North Africa and the Middle East. One notable figure from this time was Abu Bakr Mohammad al-Issa, a renowned scholar and poet who lived in Cairo during the reign of the Fatimid caliph Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah (985-1021 AD).
As the Arabic influence spread across the Mediterranean region, the name Issa also found its way into parts of Europe. In the 12th century, a Sicilian nobleman named Issa di Palermo was mentioned in chronicles of the Norman Kingdom of Sicily, which had strong ties to the Islamic world.
During the Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt and Syria (1250-1517 AD), the name Issa continued to be prominent. One notable figure was Taqi al-Din al-Issa, a 14th-century Syrian astronomer and mathematician who made significant contributions to the study of celestial mechanics and the development of astronomical instruments.
In the 16th century, the Ottoman Empire's expansion into the Middle East and North Africa led to the further spread of the name Issa. A prominent figure from this era was Mustafa al-Issa, a 17th-century Ottoman scholar and diplomat who served as the ambassador to the French court of Louis XIV.
As the centuries passed, the name Issa continued to be prevalent in various parts of the Middle East, North Africa, and the Mediterranean region, with many individuals bearing this surname making notable contributions in fields such as literature, religion, politics, and academia.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Issa
Among Census respondents with the surname Issa, the largest self-reported group is White at 69.5%. The next largest groups are Black (18.5%) and Two or More Races (4.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Issa 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 Issa surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White69.5% · 3,873
- Black or African American18.5% · 1,032
- Two or more races4.9% · 273
- Hispanic or Latino4.8% · 265
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.3% · 130
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.0% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Issa
Issa 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
#8,110
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,088
+1,512 bearers (+58.7%)
Per 100,000 1.39
Rank movement Up 3,155 places
2020
#5,950
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,575
+1,487 bearers (+36.4%)
Per 100,000 1.87
Rank movement Up 2,160 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,265 | 2,576 | 0.95 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,110 | 4,088 | 1.39 | +1,512 bearers (+58.7%) | Up 3,155 places |
| 2020 | #5,950 | 5,575 | 1.87 | +1,487 bearers (+36.4%) | Up 2,160 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 Issa 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 | #8,110 | #5,950 | 26.6% |
| Count | 4,088 | 5,575 | 36.4% |
| Per 100K | 1.39 | 1.87 | 34.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Issa bearers went from 4,088 to 5,575 (+36.4% change). The surname moved up 2,160 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,110 to #5,950.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Issa
FAQ
Issa surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Issa?
Name Census estimates that about 6,393 living Americans carry the surname Issa. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 53,614 residents.
How common is Issa?
Issa ranks #5,950 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.87 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,575 people with the surname Issa. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,393), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.87 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.87 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Issa.
Has Issa become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Issa went from 4,088 recorded bearers to 5,575. That is an increase of 1,487 (+36.4%). In the national ranking it rose from #8,110 to #5,950.
What does the Census say about the background of Issa?
Among Census respondents with the surname Issa, the largest self-reported group is White at 69.5%. The next largest groups are Black (18.5%) and Two or More Races (4.9%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Issa in the 2020 Census, accounting for 69.5% (3,873 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Issa appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (69.5%), Black (18.5%), Two or More Races (4.9%). 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 Issa (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 Issa mean?
A surname of Arabic origin meaning "Jesus" or "God is salvation," derived from the Arabic name Isa. 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 Issa (1.87 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 surname Issa?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.