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

Kawaguchi, 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 Kawaguchi surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Kawaguchi in America

Kawaguchi is the 25751st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Kawaguchi surname appeared 957 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 Kawaguchi.

We can also compare 2010 data for Kawaguchi 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 Kawaguchi

The surname Kawaguchi is of Japanese origin, and it can be traced back to the late 16th century. The name is derived from the Japanese words "kawa," meaning river, and "guchi," meaning mouth or entrance. It is believed to have originated in the Kanto region of Japan, particularly in areas near the mouth of a river.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Kawaguchi can be found in the "Shincho Koki," a historical record compiled during the late Muromachi period (1336-1573). This document mentions a samurai named Kawaguchi Nobuyoshi, who served under the powerful Hojo clan during the 15th century.

During the Edo period (1603-1868), the Kawaguchi family gained prominence as wealthy merchants and landowners in the Kanto region. Some notable figures from this time include Kawaguchi Gennai (1728-1779), a renowned inventor and scholar, and Kawaguchi Shozo (1804-1876), a successful businessman and philanthropist.

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, several Kawaguchi family members played significant roles in the modernization of Japan. Kawaguchi Hiroshi (1854-1917) was a pioneering educator who established one of the first modern schools in Japan, while Kawaguchi Masajiro (1865-1929) was a prominent journalist and political activist.

One of the most famous individuals with the surname Kawaguchi was Kawaguchi Ekai (1866-1945), a Japanese Buddhist monk and explorer. He was the first Japanese person to travel overland from Japan to India, and his accounts of his journey, published in the book "Three Years in Tibet," helped spark interest in Tibetan culture and Buddhism in Japan.

Another notable Kawaguchi was Kawaguchi Matsutaro (1899-1985), a Japanese artist and printmaker who was renowned for his woodblock prints depicting traditional Japanese scenes and landscapes. His works are highly regarded and can be found in museums and private collections around the world.

While the surname Kawaguchi is most commonly associated with Japan, it has also been adopted by families in other parts of the world, particularly in areas with significant Japanese communities or those with historical ties to Japan.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Kawaguchi

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

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

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

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