2010
#149,395
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Khawam
A surname of Arabic origin meaning "maker of bows" or "archer".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 157 Americans carry the last name Khawam. That puts it at #129,703 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.05 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,183,149 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Khawam 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
157
1 in 2,183,149
Census rank
#129,703
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
137
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 137 bearers of the surname Khawam in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.05 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 129703rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Khawam, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.3%) and Two or More Races (1.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Khawam
The surname KHAWAM has its origins in the Middle East, specifically in the Levant region, which includes modern-day Lebanon, Syria, and Palestine. The name is believed to have emerged during the medieval period, likely between the 10th and 13th centuries.
KHAWAM is thought to be derived from an Arabic word meaning "related to" or "belonging to". It may have originally been used to indicate a person's relationship to a particular family, clan, or geographic location. Some linguists suggest it could also be linked to the Arabic word "khawwam," meaning "one who moves around" or "nomad."
While there are no definitive records of the earliest appearances of the surname KHAWAM, some historians believe it may have been mentioned in ancient manuscripts or records from the region. However, concrete evidence of its use is scarce prior to the 15th century.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname KHAWAM was Youssef KHAWAM, a merchant and scholar who lived in Damascus, Syria, during the late 15th century. Another notable figure was Nassim KHAWAM, a renowned poet and philosopher from Beirut, Lebanon, who lived in the 17th century (1620-1689).
In the 19th century, a prominent KHAWAM family established itself in the city of Tripoli, Lebanon. This family produced several distinguished members, including Ibrahim KHAWAM (1810-1876), a prominent merchant and landowner, and his son, Khalil KHAWAM (1845-1923), a pioneering educator and advocate for women's rights.
Other notable individuals with the surname KHAWAM include Rafik KHAWAM (1894-1976), a Lebanese diplomat and politician who served as Prime Minister of Lebanon in the 1940s, and Wadi' KHAWAM (1907-1995), a renowned Lebanese painter and sculptor who gained international recognition for his abstract and expressionist works.
As with many surnames, the spelling of KHAWAM may have varied slightly over time and across different regions, with variations such as KHAWWAM, KHAWWAMI, or KHAWWAMEH being recorded in historical documents.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Khawam
Among Census respondents with the surname Khawam, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.3%) and Two or More Races (1.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Khawam 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 Khawam surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.5% · 124
- Hispanic or Latino7.3% · 10
- Two or more races1.5% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Khawam
Khawam appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#129,703
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 137
+27 bearers (+24.5%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Up 19,692 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #149,395 | 110 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #129,703 | 137 | 0.05 | +27 bearers (+24.5%) | Up 19,692 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 Khawam 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 | #149,395 | #129,703 | 13.2% |
| Count | 110 | 137 | 24.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.05 | 14.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Khawam bearers went from 110 to 137 (+24.5% change). The surname moved up 19,692 positions in the national ranking, going from #149,395 to #129,703.
FAQ
Khawam surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Khawam?
Name Census estimates that about 157 living Americans carry the surname Khawam. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,183,149 residents.
How common is Khawam?
Khawam ranks #129,703 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.05 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 137 people with the surname Khawam. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (157), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.05 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.05 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 Khawam.
Has Khawam become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Khawam went from 110 recorded bearers to 137. That is an increase of 27 (+24.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #149,395 to #129,703.
What does the Census say about the background of Khawam?
Among Census respondents with the surname Khawam, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.3%) and Two or More Races (1.5%). 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 Khawam in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.5% (124 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Khawam appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.5%), Hispanic (7.3%), Two or More Races (1.5%). 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 Khawam (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 Khawam mean?
A surname of Arabic origin meaning "maker of bows" or "archer". 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 Khawam (0.05 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 common is the surname Khawam?
Want to know how many Americans have the surname Khawam? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.