2000
#23,796
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 992
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.37
Rare Last name
Khawaja
A surname of Central Asian origin meaning "master, lord, or teacher."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,154 Americans carry the last name Khawaja. That puts it at #15,086 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.63 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 159,125 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Khawaja 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 Khawaja with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.2K
1 in 159,125
Census rank
#15,086
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,878 bearers of the surname Khawaja in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.63 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 15086th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Khawaja, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 76.7%. The next largest groups are White (16.1%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Khawaja
The surname "KHAWAJA" originated in the Persian and Arabic regions, with the earliest records dating back to the 10th century AD. It is derived from the Persian word "Khwaja," which means "master" or "lord." The name was initially used as a title for respected individuals, particularly scholars and religious leaders.
In the early Islamic era, the term "Khwaja" was commonly used to refer to prominent scholars and Sufi mystics. Some notable individuals who bore this title include Khwaja Shams-ud-Din Muhammad Hafiz-e Shirazi, a renowned Persian poet who lived from 1325 to 1389, and Khwaja Nasir al-Din al-Tusi, a Persian polymath and philosopher who lived from 1201 to 1274.
The surname "KHAWAJA" gained further prominence during the Mughal Empire, which ruled over parts of the Indian subcontinent from the 16th to the 19th century. Many influential figures in the Mughal court and bureaucracy held the title of "Khwaja," and it eventually became a hereditary surname.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname "KHAWAJA" can be found in the "Akbar Nama," a 16th-century historical account of the reign of the Mughal Emperor Akbar. The book mentions several individuals with the surname, including Khawaja Shamsuddin Muhammad Ghazi, a prominent military commander who served under Akbar.
Another notable figure with the surname "KHAWAJA" was Khawaja Ghulam Farid, a Sufi saint and poet who lived in present-day Pakistan during the 18th century. His shrine in Mithan Kot, Punjab, remains an important pilgrimage site for his followers.
In the realm of literature, Khawaja Mir Dard, a renowned Urdu poet and scholar, was born in Delhi in 1721. His works, including the collection "Diwaan-e-Mir Dard," have had a lasting impact on Urdu poetry.
During the British Raj in India, the surname "KHAWAJA" was also associated with influential families and landowners. One such example is Khawaja Salimullah, a wealthy zamindar (landowner) from Bengal, who lived from 1872 to 1915 and played a significant role in the Muslim political and educational movements of his time.
Over the centuries, the surname "KHAWAJA" has spread across various regions, including Central Asia, the Middle East, and parts of South Asia, reflecting the diverse cultural influences and migrations that have shaped these areas.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Khawaja
Among Census respondents with the surname Khawaja, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 76.7%. The next largest groups are White (16.1%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Khawaja 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 Khawaja surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander76.7% · 1,440
- White16.1% · 302
- Two or more races4.6% · 87
- Hispanic or Latino1.9% · 36
- Black or African American0.7% · 13
Timeline
Historical Census data for Khawaja
Khawaja 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
#18,648
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,475
+483 bearers (+48.7%)
Per 100,000 0.50
Rank movement Up 5,148 places
2020
#15,086
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,878
+403 bearers (+27.3%)
Per 100,000 0.63
Rank movement Up 3,562 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #23,796 | 992 | 0.37 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #18,648 | 1,475 | 0.50 | +483 bearers (+48.7%) | Up 5,148 places |
| 2020 | #15,086 | 1,878 | 0.63 | +403 bearers (+27.3%) | Up 3,562 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 Khawaja 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 | #18,648 | #15,086 | 19.1% |
| Count | 1,475 | 1,878 | 27.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.50 | 0.63 | 25.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Khawaja bearers went from 1,475 to 1,878 (+27.3% change). The surname moved up 3,562 positions in the national ranking, going from #18,648 to #15,086.
FAQ
Khawaja surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Khawaja?
Name Census estimates that about 2,154 living Americans carry the surname Khawaja. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 159,125 residents.
How common is Khawaja?
Khawaja ranks #15,086 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.63 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 1,878 people with the surname Khawaja. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,154), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.63 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.63 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 Khawaja.
Has Khawaja become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Khawaja went from 1,475 recorded bearers to 1,878. That is an increase of 403 (+27.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #18,648 to #15,086.
What does the Census say about the background of Khawaja?
Among Census respondents with the surname Khawaja, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 76.7%. The next largest groups are White (16.1%) and Two or More Races (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 Khawaja in the 2020 Census, accounting for 76.7% (1,440 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Khawaja appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (76.7%), White (16.1%), Two or More Races (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 Khawaja (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 Khawaja mean?
A surname of Central Asian origin meaning "master, lord, or teacher." 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 Khawaja (0.63 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 Khawaja?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how common the surname Khawaja is at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.