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

Kotake, 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 Kotake surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Kotake in America

Kotake is the 125282nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Kotake surname appeared 137 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 Kotake.

We can also compare 2010 data for Kotake 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 Kotake

The surname Kotake originates from Japan, with records dating back to the 8th century AD. It is believed to be derived from the Japanese words "ko" meaning "child" and "take" meaning "bamboo," suggesting a connection to families or individuals associated with bamboo cultivation or craftsmanship.

One of the earliest known mentions of the Kotake name can be found in the Shoku Nihongi, an imperial chronicle from the early 9th century, which references a person named Kotake no Sukemaro. This historical record provides evidence of the surname's use during the Heian period, when Japan's imperial court culture was at its peak.

During the Kamakura and Muromachi periods (12th-16th centuries), the Kotake surname appears in various regional records, indicating its spread throughout Japan. Notably, the Kotake clan was a prominent samurai family based in the Hida region (present-day Gifu Prefecture), with members serving as retainers to powerful daimyo lords.

In the Edo period (1603-1868), the Kotake family continued to hold influential positions, with some members serving as hatamoto (direct retainers of the Tokugawa shogunate) or as administrators in regional domains. A notable figure from this era was Kotake Saneaki (1603-1685), a skilled poet and calligrapher who served as a high-ranking official in the Sendai domain.

Another notable bearer of the Kotake name was Kotake Sukesada (1765-1837), a renowned swordsmith from Edo (present-day Tokyo). His works, including the famous "Kotake Sukesada" blades, are highly prized by collectors and practitioners of Japanese swordsmanship.

In more recent history, Kotake Masaru (1885-1963) was a prominent educator and philosopher who played a significant role in shaping Japan's modern educational system. He served as the president of Tokyo University of Education (now Tsukuba University) and was instrumental in promoting the principles of democratic education in post-war Japan.

Other notable individuals with the Kotake surname include Kotake Fumiko (1901-1963), a pioneering feminist writer and activist who advocated for women's rights and gender equality, and Kotake Hisashi (1909-1983), a renowned architect known for his innovative and sustainable designs, including the Kotake Munesada Museum in Shizuoka Prefecture.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Kotake

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

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

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

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