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

Kojima, 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 Kojima surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Kojima in America

Kojima is the 25889th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Kojima surname appeared 950 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Kojima.

We can also compare 2010 data for Kojima 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 Kojima

The surname Kojima has its origins in Japan, where it first appeared in the late 8th century. The name is derived from the Japanese words "ko" meaning "small" and "jima" meaning "island". It was likely originally given as a descriptive name to someone who lived on a small island or islet.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Kojima can be found in the Shoku Nihongi, an early Japanese chronicle compiled in 797 AD. This text mentions a village called "Kojima-mura" in the Omi Province, suggesting the name was already in use by that time.

During the Heian period (794-1185 AD), the Kojima name appears in various records and manuscripts associated with samurai clans and noble families. For example, the Kojima clan was a prominent family of daimyo (feudal lords) based in what is now Okayama Prefecture.

A notable early bearer of the Kojima name was Kojima Noritsune (1156-1216), a celebrated samurai warrior who served under the famous shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo. Noritsune played a key role in the Genpei War and the establishment of the Kamakura Shogunate.

During the Edo period (1603-1868), several Kojima families held influential positions as hatamoto (direct retainers of the Tokugawa Shogunate). One such figure was Kojima Takanori (1639-1708), a high-ranking daimyo and skilled poet.

In the Meiji era (1868-1912), Kojima Atsushi (1853-1925) was a prominent educator and philosopher who helped modernize Japan's education system. He served as the first president of Tokyo Imperial University (now the University of Tokyo).

Another notable Kojima was Kojima Usui (1873-1948), a pioneering photographer and one of the first Japanese artists to work extensively with the medium. His works documented the rapidly changing landscape of early 20th century Japan.

The Kojima name has also been associated with several place names throughout Japan's history, such as Kojima Island in Okayama Prefecture and the former Kojima Domain in what is now Kurashiki City.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Kojima

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

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

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

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