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

Koyama, 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 Koyama surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Koyama in America

Koyama is the 29626th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Koyama surname appeared 795 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 Koyama.

We can also compare 2010 data for Koyama 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 Koyama

The surname Koyama originates from Japan and is of Japanese origin. It is derived from the Japanese words "ko" meaning "small" or "little" and "yama" meaning "mountain." As such, the name Koyama translates to "small mountain" or "little mountain."

The name Koyama has its roots in the geographic regions of Japan where there are numerous small mountains and hills. It is believed to have been used as a toponymic surname, referring to a person who lived near or in the vicinity of a small mountain or hill.

While the exact origin of the surname Koyama is unclear, it is thought to have emerged during the Kamakura period (1185-1333) or the Muromachi period (1336-1573) in Japan's history. These were times when surnames became more widespread and hereditary among the Japanese population.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Koyama can be found in the Azuma Kagami, a historical chronicle of Japan's Kamakura period. The text mentions a samurai warrior named Koyama Tomoshige, who lived in the late 12th century and served under the famous shogun, Minamoto no Yoritomo.

Another prominent figure bearing the Koyama surname was Koyama Yasunori (1642-1711), a renowned educator and Confucian scholar during the Edo period. He established the Koyama Gakuen, a private academy in Osaka that became highly influential in the realm of education.

In the field of literature, Koyama Atsushi (1912-1994) was a celebrated Japanese novelist and essayist. He is best known for his novel "Musashino Fujin" (The Lady from Musashino), which explored the lives of middle-class women in post-war Japan.

The Koyama surname has also been associated with notable figures in the world of sports. Koyama Yūko (born 1968) is a former professional tennis player who represented Japan in international competitions and achieved a career-high ranking of No. 4 in the world.

Additionally, Koyama Hiroshi (1932-2019) was a highly respected sumo wrestler and coach. He achieved the prestigious rank of ozeki, one of the highest ranks in professional sumo, and later served as a coach, mentoring numerous successful wrestlers.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Koyama

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

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

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

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