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

Jaffe, 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 Jaffe surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Jaffe in America

Jaffe is the 5886th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Jaffe surname appeared 5,865 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Jaffe.

We can also compare 2010 data for Jaffe 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 Jaffe

The surname JAFFE originated in Germany and traces its roots back to the Middle Ages. It is a variant of the Hebrew name Japheth, which means "enlargement" or "extension." The name was often adopted by Jewish families who settled in various parts of Germany during the medieval period.

One of the earliest known references to the name JAFFE can be found in the historical records of the city of Worms, Germany, dating back to the 13th century. The name appears in documents related to the Jewish community in Worms, which was one of the largest and most influential Jewish settlements in Europe during that time.

The name JAFFE has been associated with several notable individuals throughout history. One of the earliest recorded bearers of the name was Rabbi Shlomo ben Yitzchak, also known as the Rashi (1040-1105), a renowned French rabbi and biblical commentator who lived in Troyes, France. Although his surname was not officially recorded, some historians believe he may have been a member of the JAFFE family.

Another prominent figure with the surname JAFFE was Moses ben Maimon, also known as Maimonides (1135-1204), a preeminent medieval Sephardic Jewish philosopher and physician who lived in Spain and Egypt. While his surname was not officially recorded, some scholars suggest he may have been a member of the JAFFE family as well.

In the 19th century, the surname JAFFE gained prominence with the birth of Abraham Jaffe (1824-1898), a Russian-born Jewish banker and philanthropist who established several educational institutions in St. Petersburg, Russia.

Other notable individuals with the surname JAFFE include:

1. Otto Jaffe (1846-1929), a German-born American banker and philanthropist.
2. Max Jaffe (1866-1945), a German-born British businessman and philanthropist.
3. Louis I. Jaffe (1892-1950), an American law professor and expert in administrative law.
4. Max Jaffe (1894-1976), an American lawyer and judge.
5. Harry V. Jaffe (1898-1975), an American businessman and philanthropist.

Over time, the surname JAFFE has undergone various spelling variations, including Jaffe, Jafe, Jaffee, and Jaffa, reflecting the diverse regions where Jewish families with this name settled and the different languages and cultures they encountered.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Jaffe

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

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

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

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