2000
#128,797
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 122
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Kayali
Turkish surname meaning "person from mountains or cliffs".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 311 Americans carry the last name Kayali. That puts it at #76,478 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.09 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,102,104 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kayali 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
311
1 in 1,102,104
Census rank
#76,478
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
271
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 271 bearers of the surname Kayali in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.09 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 76478th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kayali, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (1.5%) and Hispanic (1.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kayali
The surname Kayali is believed to have originated in the Middle East, specifically in Syria and Lebanon. It is an Arabic surname derived from the word "qawali," which means "storyteller" or "reciter of poetry." The earliest known records of this surname date back to the 12th century.
During the medieval period, storytellers and poets were highly regarded in Arab societies, and they often traveled from town to town, reciting poetry and tales. It is possible that the Kayali surname was initially given to those who practiced this profession, and it later became a hereditary family name.
One of the earliest notable individuals with the surname Kayali was Abu Bakr al-Kayali, a renowned poet and scholar who lived in Damascus in the late 12th century. His works were widely celebrated and preserved in various manuscripts from that era.
In the 14th century, the name appears in historical records from the city of Aleppo, where a family of Kayalis held prominent positions in the local administration. One member, Ahmad ibn Muhammad al-Kayali, served as the governor of Aleppo in the 1360s.
During the Ottoman Empire's rule over the region, the Kayali surname continued to be associated with literary and scholarly pursuits. In the 16th century, a man named Mustafa al-Kayali was renowned for his expertise in Islamic jurisprudence and served as a judge in various cities across the Ottoman territories.
Another notable figure was Hasan al-Kayali, a 17th-century poet and calligrapher from Beirut. His works were highly praised, and his calligraphic pieces adorned the walls of mosques and palaces throughout the region.
In the 19th century, the Kayali surname gained further prominence with the birth of Khalil al-Kayali, a renowned Syrian politician and statesman. He played a pivotal role in the independence movement against French colonial rule and served as the first Prime Minister of Syria after the country gained its independence in 1946.
Over the centuries, the Kayali surname has also been associated with various place names in the Middle East, such as Kayali Village in northern Syria and the town of Kayali in southern Lebanon. These place names may have influenced the spelling and pronunciation of the surname in different regions.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kayali
Among Census respondents with the surname Kayali, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (1.5%) and Hispanic (1.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Kayali 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 Kayali surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White95.9% · 260
- Two or more races1.5% · 4
- Hispanic or Latino1.1% · 3
- Black or African American0.7% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kayali
Kayali 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
#95,115
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 192
+70 bearers (+57.4%)
Per 100,000 0.07
Rank movement Up 33,682 places
2020
#76,478
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 271
+79 bearers (+41.1%)
Per 100,000 0.09
Rank movement Up 18,637 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #128,797 | 122 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #95,115 | 192 | 0.07 | +70 bearers (+57.4%) | Up 33,682 places |
| 2020 | #76,478 | 271 | 0.09 | +79 bearers (+41.1%) | Up 18,637 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 Kayali 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 | #95,115 | #76,478 | 19.6% |
| Count | 192 | 271 | 41.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.07 | 0.09 | 29.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kayali bearers went from 192 to 271 (+41.1% change). The surname moved up 18,637 positions in the national ranking, going from #95,115 to #76,478.
FAQ
Kayali surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kayali?
Name Census estimates that about 311 living Americans carry the surname Kayali. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,102,104 residents.
How common is Kayali?
Kayali ranks #76,478 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.09 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 271 people with the surname Kayali. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (311), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.09 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.09 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 Kayali.
Has Kayali become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kayali went from 192 recorded bearers to 271. That is an increase of 79 (+41.1%). In the national ranking it rose from #95,115 to #76,478.
What does the Census say about the background of Kayali?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kayali, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (1.5%) and Hispanic (1.1%). 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 Kayali in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.9% (260 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kayali appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (95.9%), Two or More Races (1.5%), Hispanic (1.1%). 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 Kayali (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 Kayali mean?
Turkish surname meaning "person from mountains or cliffs". 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 Kayali (0.09 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 last name Kayali?
See how many people have the last name Kayali on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.