2000
#20,041
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,238
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.46
Rare Last name
Jamil
Of Arabic origin, meaning beautiful or handsome.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,863 Americans carry the last name Jamil. That puts it at #11,963 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.84 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 119,719 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Jamil 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 Jamil with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.9K
1 in 119,719
Census rank
#11,963
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,497 bearers of the surname Jamil in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.84 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11963rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Jamil, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 61.4%. The next largest groups are White (30.6%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Jamil
The surname Jamil originated from the Arabic language and has its roots in the Middle East. It is derived from the Arabic word "jamil," which means "beautiful" or "handsome." The name is thought to have first emerged in the 7th or 8th century during the Islamic Golden Age, a period of cultural and scientific prosperity in the Arab world.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Jamil can be found in the writings of famous Arab poets and scholars from the 9th and 10th centuries. The renowned poet Abu Tammam, who lived from 805 to 845 CE, mentioned the name in his poems, suggesting its widespread use at the time.
In the 11th century, the name Jamil appeared in various historical manuscripts and records, particularly in regions that were once part of the Islamic empires, such as modern-day Iraq, Syria, and Egypt. Some notable individuals from this era include Jamil al-Din al-Aqsara'i, a renowned Islamic scholar and physician who lived from 1066 to 1134 CE.
As the name spread across the Arab world, it also found its way into other regions, including parts of Europe and Asia. In the 13th century, the name was mentioned in the writings of the famous Persian poet and philosopher Rumi, who referred to a person named Jamil in his works.
During the Ottoman Empire, which ruled over vast territories in the Middle East and parts of Europe from the 14th to the early 20th century, the name Jamil became more prevalent. One prominent figure from this period was Jamil Pasha, an Ottoman statesman and governor who lived from 1853 to 1909.
As the Arab diaspora spread across the globe, the surname Jamil traveled with them. In the 19th and 20th centuries, individuals with the name Jamil can be found in various parts of the world, such as Jamil Jayyusi, a Palestinian writer and academic who lived from 1925 to 2009, and Jamil Naqsh, a renowned Pakistani artist born in 1938.
Throughout its history, the surname Jamil has been associated with various places and regions, including the cities of Damascus and Baghdad, as well as the broader Levantine region and the Arabian Peninsula. Its enduring presence across centuries and cultures is a testament to the rich cultural heritage and linguistic diversity of the Arab world.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Jamil
Among Census respondents with the surname Jamil, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 61.4%. The next largest groups are White (30.6%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Jamil 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 Jamil surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander61.4% · 1,534
- White30.6% · 763
- Two or more races4.2% · 105
- Black or African American1.9% · 47
- Hispanic or Latino1.8% · 46
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Jamil
Jamil 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
#18,579
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,484
+246 bearers (+19.9%)
Per 100,000 0.50
Rank movement Up 1,462 places
2020
#11,963
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,497
+1,013 bearers (+68.3%)
Per 100,000 0.84
Rank movement Up 6,616 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #20,041 | 1,238 | 0.46 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #18,579 | 1,484 | 0.50 | +246 bearers (+19.9%) | Up 1,462 places |
| 2020 | #11,963 | 2,497 | 0.84 | +1,013 bearers (+68.3%) | Up 6,616 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 Jamil 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 | #18,579 | #11,963 | 35.6% |
| Count | 1,484 | 2,497 | 68.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.50 | 0.84 | 67.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Jamil bearers went from 1,484 to 2,497 (+68.3% change). The surname moved up 6,616 positions in the national ranking, going from #18,579 to #11,963.
FAQ
Jamil surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Jamil?
Name Census estimates that about 2,863 living Americans carry the surname Jamil. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 119,719 residents.
How common is Jamil?
Jamil ranks #11,963 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.84 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 2,497 people with the surname Jamil. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,863), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.84 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.84 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 Jamil.
Has Jamil become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Jamil went from 1,484 recorded bearers to 2,497. That is an increase of 1,013 (+68.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #18,579 to #11,963.
What does the Census say about the background of Jamil?
Among Census respondents with the surname Jamil, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 61.4%. The next largest groups are White (30.6%) and Two or More Races (4.2%). 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 Jamil in the 2020 Census, accounting for 61.4% (1,534 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Jamil appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (61.4%), White (30.6%), Two or More Races (4.2%). 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 Jamil (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 Jamil mean?
Of Arabic origin, meaning beautiful or handsome. 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 Jamil (0.84 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 are called Jamil?
See how many Americans have the surname Jamil on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.