2000
#148,244
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Kamalii
An Hawaiian surname referring to one's royal status and lineage.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 112 Americans carry the last name Kamalii. That puts it at #156,269 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 3,060,307 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kamalii 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
112
1 in 3,060,307
Census rank
#156,269
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
98
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 98 bearers of the surname Kamalii in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 156269th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kamalii, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 53.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (23.5%) and Two or More Races (18.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kamalii
The surname KAMALII has its origins in the Hawaiian language and culture. It is believed to have emerged in the late 18th century, when the Hawaiian islands were first encountered by European explorers and traders.
The name is thought to be derived from the Hawaiian words "kama," meaning child or offspring, and "lii," meaning royal or chiefly. This suggests that KAMALII may have originally referred to a child of noble or high-ranking lineage within the traditional Hawaiian social structure.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name KAMALII can be found in the journals of Captain James Cook, the British explorer who visited the Hawaiian Islands in 1778. In his writings, Cook made reference to a Hawaiian chief named Kamalii, indicating that the name was in use among the island's elite classes at that time.
Another early example of the KAMALII surname can be found in the records of the Protestant missionaries who arrived in Hawaii in the early 19th century. These missionaries often recorded the names of their Hawaiian converts, and several individuals with the surname KAMALII are listed in their documents from this period.
One notable figure bearing the KAMALII name was Keoni Ana KAMALII, a Hawaiian scholar and translator who lived from 1825 to 1882. He played a crucial role in preserving and documenting the Hawaiian language and culture, working closely with the missionaries to translate religious texts and other materials into Hawaiian.
Another prominent individual with the KAMALII surname was Luka KAMALII, a Hawaiian politician and landowner who lived from 1835 to 1899. He served as a member of the Hawaiian Kingdom's House of Nobles and was known for his advocacy for Hawaiian land rights and self-governance.
In the late 19th century, a Hawaiian singer and composer named Joseph KAMALII gained recognition for his contributions to the development of Hawaiian music. Born in 1855, he composed numerous songs that became popular across the islands and helped to preserve and promote Hawaiian musical traditions.
As the Hawaiian Islands underwent significant social and political changes in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the KAMALII name continued to be associated with influential figures in Hawaiian society. One such individual was David KAMALII, a businessman and landowner who was born in 1871 and played a role in the economic development of the islands during this period.
Overall, the surname KAMALII has a rich history and cultural significance in Hawaii, with roots that can be traced back to the islands' traditional social structure and the arrival of European explorers and missionaries in the late 18th and early 19th centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kamalii
Among Census respondents with the surname Kamalii, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 53.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (23.5%) and Two or More Races (18.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Kamalii 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 Kamalii surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander53.1% · 52
- Hispanic or Latino23.5% · 23
- Two or more races18.4% · 18
- White5.1% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kamalii
Kamalii 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
#150,452
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 109
+7 bearers (+6.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 2,208 places
2020
#156,269
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 98
-11 bearers (-10.1%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 5,817 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #148,244 | 102 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #150,452 | 109 | 0.04 | +7 bearers (+6.9%) | Down 2,208 places |
| 2020 | #156,269 | 98 | 0.03 | -11 bearers (-10.1%) | Down 5,817 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 Kamalii 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 | #150,452 | #156,269 | -3.9% |
| Count | 109 | 98 | -10.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -18.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kamalii bearers went from 109 to 98 (-10.1% change). The surname moved down 5,817 positions in the national ranking, going from #150,452 to #156,269.
FAQ
Kamalii surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kamalii?
Name Census estimates that about 112 living Americans carry the surname Kamalii. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 3,060,307 residents.
How common is Kamalii?
Kamalii ranks #156,269 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 98 people with the surname Kamalii. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (112), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Kamalii.
Has Kamalii become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kamalii went from 109 recorded bearers to 98. That is a decrease of 11 (-10.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #150,452 to #156,269.
What does the Census say about the background of Kamalii?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kamalii, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 53.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (23.5%) and Two or More Races (18.4%). 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 Kamalii in the 2020 Census, accounting for 53.1% (52 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kamalii appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (53.1%), Hispanic (23.5%), Two or More Races (18.4%). 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 Kamalii (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 Kamalii mean?
An Hawaiian surname referring to one's royal status and lineage. 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 Kamalii (0.03 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 share the surname Kamalii?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.