2000
#24,642
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 950
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.35
Rare Last name
Kazi
An occupational surname referring to a judge, magistrate or official.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,311 Americans carry the last name Kazi. That puts it at #14,290 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.67 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 148,314 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kazi 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 Kazi with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.3K
1 in 148,314
Census rank
#14,290
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,015 bearers of the surname Kazi in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.67 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14290th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kazi, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 87.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.7%) and White (4.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Kazi
The surname KAZI has its origins in the Indian subcontinent, specifically in the region of Bengal, which is now divided between Bangladesh and the Indian states of West Bengal and Tripura. The name can be traced back to the 16th century or earlier.
KAZI is derived from the Arabic word "qazi," which means a judge or a magistrate. It was a title bestowed upon Islamic legal scholars and judges who presided over religious and civil matters in the region. Over time, the title became a hereditary surname for the descendants of these judicial officials.
In the historical records of Bengal, the name KAZI appears frequently, particularly in documents related to land ownership and administration. Some of the earliest known references to the name can be found in the writings of Sufi saints and Islamic scholars from the region, who often mentioned KAZI families in their works.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name KAZI is in the Ain-i-Akbari, a 16th-century administrative manual written during the reign of the Mughal Emperor Akbar. The book mentions several KAZI families who held influential positions in the judicial system of the Mughal Empire.
In the 17th century, the KAZI surname was also prominent in the court records of the Nawabs of Bengal, who were the regional rulers under the Mughal Empire. Notable individuals with the KAZI surname from this period include Qazi Nur Muhammad (1618-1679), a renowned Islamic scholar and judge who served as the Chief Qazi of Bengal during the reign of Aurangzeb.
Another notable KAZI figure was Qazi Abdul Karim (1633-1711), a renowned Islamic scholar and jurist who wrote several treatises on Islamic law and was appointed as the Chief Qazi of Bengal by the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb.
In the 18th century, the KAZI surname was associated with the Muslim gentry and landed aristocracy of Bengal. One prominent example is Qazi Fazl-e-Karim (1724-1794), a wealthy landowner and philanthropist who established several educational institutions and mosques in the region.
During the British colonial period in India, the KAZI surname continued to be associated with the Muslim landed elite and judicial officials. One notable figure was Sir Abdur Rahman Kazi (1855-1927), a prominent lawyer and judge who served as the first Indian Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court.
Throughout its history, the KAZI surname has been closely linked to the Islamic legal and judicial traditions of Bengal, reflecting the significant role played by these families in shaping the region's socio-cultural and legal landscape over several centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kazi
Among Census respondents with the surname Kazi, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 87.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.7%) and White (4.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Kazi 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 Kazi surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander87.6% · 1,766
- Two or more races4.7% · 94
- White4.6% · 92
- Hispanic or Latino1.5% · 31
- Black or African American1.3% · 27
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kazi
Kazi 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
#18,751
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,463
+513 bearers (+54.0%)
Per 100,000 0.50
Rank movement Up 5,891 places
2020
#14,290
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,015
+552 bearers (+37.7%)
Per 100,000 0.67
Rank movement Up 4,461 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #24,642 | 950 | 0.35 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #18,751 | 1,463 | 0.50 | +513 bearers (+54.0%) | Up 5,891 places |
| 2020 | #14,290 | 2,015 | 0.67 | +552 bearers (+37.7%) | Up 4,461 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 Kazi 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 | #18,751 | #14,290 | 23.8% |
| Count | 1,463 | 2,015 | 37.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.50 | 0.67 | 34.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kazi bearers went from 1,463 to 2,015 (+37.7% change). The surname moved up 4,461 positions in the national ranking, going from #18,751 to #14,290.
FAQ
Kazi surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kazi?
Name Census estimates that about 2,311 living Americans carry the surname Kazi. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 148,314 residents.
How common is Kazi?
Kazi ranks #14,290 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.67 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 2,015 people with the surname Kazi. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,311), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.67 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.67 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 Kazi.
Has Kazi become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kazi went from 1,463 recorded bearers to 2,015. That is an increase of 552 (+37.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #18,751 to #14,290.
What does the Census say about the background of Kazi?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kazi, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 87.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.7%) and White (4.6%). 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 Kazi in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.6% (1,766 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kazi appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (87.6%), Two or More Races (4.7%), White (4.6%). 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 Kazi (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 Kazi mean?
An occupational surname referring to a judge, magistrate or official. 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 Kazi (0.67 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 Kazi?
See how many Americans have the surname Kazi on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.