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

Kohli, 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 Kohli surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Kohli in America

Kohli is the 14006th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Kohli surname appeared 2,150 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Kohli.

We can also compare 2010 data for Kohli 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 Kohli

The surname Kohli is of Indian origin, specifically from the Punjab region of northern India. The name is derived from the Sanskrit word 'Koh,' which means 'mountain,' and 'li' or 'lee,' meaning 'dweller.' Therefore, the name Kohli translates to 'a person who lives in or near the mountains.'

The earliest recorded instances of the name Kohli can be traced back to the 16th century in various historical records and manuscripts from the Punjab region. Some of the earliest known individuals with the surname Kohli include Bhai Mati Das Kohli (1661-1675), a Sikh martyr who was executed for refusing to convert to Islam during the Mughal rule, and Bhai Dayala Kohli (17th century), a renowned Sikh scholar and poet.

The name Kohli has been associated with various place names in the Punjab region, such as Kohli village in the Gurdaspur district and Kohli Khurd village in the Hoshiarpur district. These place names likely originated from the surname itself, indicating areas where families with the Kohli surname resided.

Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the surname Kohli. One of the most famous is Khushwant Singh Kohli (1915-2014), an Indian novelist, lawyer, and journalist who was widely regarded as one of the finest English writers in India. Another prominent figure is Raghunath Vaidya Kohli (1898-1981), an Indian freedom fighter and politician who served as a member of the Constituent Assembly that drafted India's constitution.

Other significant individuals with the surname Kohli include Sunil Kohli (1942-2022), a renowned Indian actor and playwright known for his work in Hindi theater and films, and Ajay Kohli (born 1954), an Indian businessman and philanthropist who co-founded the multinational technology company HCL Technologies.

It is worth noting that the surname Kohli is not limited to a specific region or community in India. While it has its roots in the Punjab region, families with this surname can be found in various parts of the country and even among the Indian diaspora around the world.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Kohli

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

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

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

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